If it weren’t for the fact that he keeps winning every time, you might be able to talk yourself into thinking that UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis isn’t such a great fighter.
If you were just going on looks alone, maybe. If you only watched the early parts of his fights, like when he was out there lunging at Israel Adesanya in the UFC 305 main event. Or even later, when he was getting his ribs tenderized with punches and kicks while looking like a man who was wishing he could call time out and sit a spell. Then you would be forgiven for thinking that this guy was far from being the world’s best middleweight.
But keep on watching and, sure enough, sooner or later he finds a way to win. Against Adesanya, the champ only needed the tiniest little opening provided by one momentary defensive lapse. And even if just moments before he was looking tired and drained, laboring reluctantly to stand and fight, when his moment came du Plessis leapt on Adesanya’s back and clamped on the choke to force the tap late in Round 4.
With that, du Plessis has now beaten (almost) everyone who has held the UFC middleweight strap at any point in the last seven years. The lone exception is Alex Pereira, who had the belt for less than six months and has since moved up to light heavyweight.
Now, after only eight fights and just a shade under four full years in the UFC, du Plessis has climbed to the top of the mountain and stayed at least long enough to have a good look around. At no point has he seemed dominant or invulnerable. At some points his success doesn’t even seem to make sense. Still it exists, as bafflingly inevitable as any other paradox of the known universe.
Whatever we may think of his success or how long it may last, we have to finally admit that du Plessis deserves that title around his waist. If he didn’t, someone would have beaten him by now. And at least during his time in the UFC, it simply hasn’t happened. We might not be able to understand how he keeps winning these fights, but maybe we don’t have to. The facts speak for themselves, and they are undeniable.
As for what should come next, that’s a little trickier. Sean Strickland, who had a cup of coffee with the middleweight belt before dropping it to du Plessis earlier this year, thinks he ought to be next in line. Pereira, who seems to think he could still get down to 185 pounds with the proper motivation, has also teased the idea of a return. Then there’s Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev set to fight (or so we’re told) in October, and the winner there could have a strong claim to the next title shot.
One thing about being a champion with a habit of tiptoeing up to defeat right before soaring to victory, there are never a shortage of people who think they could be the one to finally beat you. Du Plessis is guaranteed to have plenty of eager challengers. But after successfully defending his title against the most dominant middleweight of the last five years, he at least deserves to have fewer doubters.
A few other notes on UFC 305 from Perth, Australia …
Adesanya says he’s not done, nor does he need to be. Yes, he lost. But he looked great at several points in this fight, and clearly he can still compete. The question is whether he wants to keep doing it at middleweight, where more title shots might be tough to come by, or whether it’s worth thinking about going up in weight to follow in Pereira’s footsteps.
Kai Kara-France is once again that rarest of treats: a flyweight finisher. He needed a win in a bad, bad way after two straight losses, and it didn’t take him long to get it. Kara-France dropped Steve Erceg late in the opening round, then polished him off a few seconds later and was talking about a title shot before the sweat was even dry. He might need something resembling a winning streak first, but he can’t be too far out of the picture.
Who’d have thought Dan Hooker still had so much fight in him? Stylistically, Mateusz Gamrot seemed like a terrible matchup for “The Hangman.” But even with his face sliced up by the end of the first, Hooker never lost his enthusiasm for this battle. Maybe there’s still time for Hooker to make a memorable run toward the top of the division.
It’s not looking great for Tai Tuivasa. His loss to Jairzinho Rozenstruik makes it five straight defeats. I know the UFC playbook says that you never cut a likable heavyweight slugger, but at some point the guy has to win a fight … doesn’t he?
Carlos Prates is a scary individual. His main card opener against Li Jingliang had the feel of a showcase fight from the start, and Prates showed a whole lot in less than 10 minutes of work. Welterweights beware, that is a left hand you do not want to see the business end of.
