Dricus du Plessis knows Sean Strickland's next UFC fight, why  'Stillknocks' might hate Alex Pereira, and more: MMA Rumor Roundup

Dricus du Plessis claims to know who his UFC 312 opponent Sean Strickland will fight next. He also seemed confident about his next UFC venture. Elsewhere, a veteran ex-UFC fighter and analyst weighed in on Alex Pereira's alleged hatred of 'Stillknocks'.

Here are your biggest and most exciting combat sports rumors from this week, presented by Sportskeeda MMA.

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Dricus du Plessis is confident about his next UFC fight

Dricus du Plessis called Alex Pereira out during the octagon interview after beating Sean Strickland at UFC 312. In the backstage, they verbally agreed to fight at light heavyweight.

That led many to believe the South African is eyeing a double championship soon. However, Du Plessis made it crystal clear in the post-fight press conference that he wants to face Khamzat Chimaev in his next outing:

"No. Khamzat's first... [Alex Pereira] is such a legend in the sport, to me already, that it would be amazing to beat him for my legacy. I want to be the greatest to ever do this. But Khamzat's next. ... I think he deserves a hiding."

Chimaev, meanwhile, was thoroughly unimpressed with the Du Plessis vs. Strickland title fight. He labeled it "biggest bullsh*t" in a tweet posted right after the contest.

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Sean Strickland's next step is a rematch with Israel Adesanya

Speaking of claiming things with confidence, Dricus du Plessis also said during the UFC 312 post-fight press conference that he knows who Sean Strickland would fight next: it's Israel Adesanya.

"I know what's gonna happen next. I can almost guarantee you what's happening next. Is there any bet that he's fighting [Israel] Adesanya next? Yeah... [Nassourdine] Imavov, no way. He has already shown he beats that style every time."

Du Plessis further predicted that it would take place as a UFC Fight Night main event.

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Ronda Rousey came to fight Holly Holm straight from a movie

During a conversation with Mark Bouris on Straight Talk, Dana White praised Dricus du Plessis for arriving in Sydney, Australia for UFC 312 early enough to get acclimatized to the region. The UFC CEO claimed that not many fighters follow this and unfortunately pay the price.

White said that Ronda Rousey had arrived in Melbourne, Australia for the UFC 193 fight against Holm only three days before the event:

"Ronda Rousey, when she flew over here to Australia and lost to Holly Holm, she came straight from filming a movie, got here three days before the fight, had a hard time making weight because of it, and obviously the time difference. And you saw how that fight ended for Ronda."

Rousey, who's widely considered one of the earliest trailblazers for women's MMA, never competed in the sport again after two back-to-back losses. The second-round knockout defeat against Holm was Rousey's first MMA loss. A year later, she was knocked out by Amanda Nunes in 48 seconds.

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Ilia Topuria on Alexander Volkanovski rematch: "Maybe next time I'll submit him"

Speaking with Mainevent ahead of UFC 312, Ilia Topuria said that Alexander Volkanovski very much deserved a rematch if 'El Matador' remained at featherweight. However, he doesn't want to do it again because he knows how it would go, insinuating that he'd beat him again:

"I have to give him the rematch because he deserves that... I don't want to do it again, because I like Volk and I know what's going to happen if we face each other again... Maybe next time instead of knocking him out, I will submit him."

Volkanovski cornering Colby Thicknesse against Topuria's brother Aleksandre at UFC 312 rekindled the rumors of a title rematch between the two. The last time they fought, Volkanovski got knocked out in the second round.

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Why Alex Pereira might hate Dricus du Plessis

Alex Pereira's alleged hatred towards Dricus du Plessis became a talking point after Sean Strickland revealed the information but refused to elaborate on it. MMA community's resident analyst of all things, Chael Sonnen, took it upon himself to theorize what Du Plessis may have done to make a hater out of Pereira.

Sonnen said on his YouTube channel:

"I don’t believe that it’s first-hand. If it was first-hand, Dricus [du Plessis] and Alex [Pereira] would’ve already told us… I don't think they had a workout gone bad. I don't think they were seated next to each other and it didn't go well. I think it’s second hand, I think that Alex has observed Dricus [and that's where his hate comes from]."

As an example, Sonnen shared that he once observed Michael Bisping be "abrasive" towards a waitress at a restaurant, but later realized that is how 'The Count' talks and that he had misjudged the Brit.

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Canelo Alvarez used Jake Paul to get a better offer

The world of boxing went topsy-turvy last week over Canelo Alvarez's boxing future. It was initially reported that he was going to fight Terence Crawford under the banner of Riyadh Season. The fight was soon reported to be canceled, and Alvarez was rumored to be in talks with Jake Paul.

'The Problem Child' even revealed the date and venue of his next outing but withheld the opponent's name.

However, it was soon reported and confirmed that Alvarez had signed with Turki Alalshikh's promotion after all and is set to fight William Scull in Saudi Arabia next as an alleged tune-up for Crawford.

Following the announcement, Paul blasted a certain "money-chasing, no respect-having nut" who "bent the knee" just like other fighters. He didn't take any name, but fans seem to think that Alvarez was the target of his profanities.

The debacle led fans to believe Alvarez used the offer Paul had made to negotiate a better deal with Alalshikh.