According to UFC CEO Dana White, Sean Strickland will likely be next for Dricus du Plessis after the middleweight champ finished Israel Adesanya in the main event of UFC 305. Will that ultimately be the fight that’s made?
On a special live edition of On To the Next One, MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck and guest host Jed Meshew discuss what’s next for du Plessis after his first title defense, along with where Adesanya goes from his third loss in four fights. Additionally, future matchups are discussed for Kai Kara-France after his big knockout of Steve Erceg in the co-main event, along with fellow main card winners Dan Hooker, Jairzinho Rozenstruik, Carlos Prates, and more.
Watch the UFC 305 edition of On To the Next One in the video above. Audio-only versions of the podcast can be found below, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, and wherever you find your favorite podcasts.
AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas will host the Nov. 15th boxing match between former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson and social media influencer turned pugilist Jake Paul.
The two were originally scheduled to fight on July 20, but the bout was postponed due to Tyson suffering a medical issue. On Sunday, Paul and Tyson appeared at a press conference in New York to promote the upcoming fight.
Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping has criticized the matchup since it was made. Tyson is 58-years old taking on Paul who is 27.
“We know the fight is a joke. Let’s be honest,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel while watching the press conference live. “Let’s see if he can get us anymore excited about this absolutely sh*t show, this farce of a fight.”
When Paul was boo’ed by the New York crowd, he insulted the city but also discredited the matchup with Tyson at the same time.
“Shut the f**k up New York. Boo yourself,” Paul said at the press conference. “New York, you’re just like Mike Tyson, you were good 20 years ago.”
Paul’s insult about “The Big Apple,” and to Tyson, legitimized Bisping’s criticism of the matchup.
“Jake, I hate to point out the obvious, that makes you look pathetic. You just admitted that you’re going up against an old man,” Bisping said. “Jake Paul, he’s a total, he’s just a tool bag.”
“It’s nice to see that he’s finally getting boo’d and the kind of response that he deserves… Finally, for once, an educated crowd.”
“This is Grade A bullish*t,” Bisping continued. “He picks these opponents that are, in this case he’s 58, or they are way past their sell by date, or they’re smaller than you. Fighting is about challenging yourself.”
Bisping went on to trash Paul more than he already had. “You are a joke. You are a disgrace to the combat world. You’re a wannabe. You’re a fake. Challenge yourself you pathetic man, you pathetic individual,” Bisping said.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis defended his 185-pound crown with an exclamation point, submitting former division titleholder Israel Adesanya atop the UFC 305 pay-per-view (PPV) event last weekend at RAC Arena in Perth, Western Australia.
Relive the madness here.
Du Plessis (22-2) is expected to make his next title defense against former division champion Sean Strickland, a rematch from the UFC 297 headliner earlier this year in Toronto that had “Stillknocks” squeaking by “Tarzan” with a super close split decision.
More on that (mild) controversy here.
That said, current light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira was also teasing a return to 185 pounds, where he once held the middleweight strap. In addition, the winner of Robert Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev — who collide at UFC 308 — is also in the mix.
Here’s what the bookies at SportsBetting.ag set as the opening odds.
Dricus Du Plessis -130 Sean Strickland +110
Dricus Du Plessis -200 Alex Pereira +170
Dricus Du Plessis -185 Robert Whittaker +160
Dricus Du Plessis +170 Khamzat Chimaev -200
Maybe they missed that third round of the Chimaev-Usman fight.
With the current UFC schedule quickly filling up and just one PPV event remaining without a headlining act, we probably won’t see Du Plessis back inside the cage until early 2025. It may be worth the wait if “Stillknocks” gets to headline the promotion’s first-ever fight card in Africa.
For more results and fallout from last weekend’s UFC 305 event click here.
Despite a heated rivalry that turned ugly on more than one past occasion, Israel Adesanya and Dricus du Plessis put all that to bed after they battled it out in the UFC 305 main event. In the end, du Plessis came out on top with a fourth-round rear-naked choke submission to defend his UFC middleweight title, but immediately afterward he paid homage to Adesanya, calling the former two-time champ a “legend” and a future “Hall of Famer.”
After the loss, Adesanya said he may even hang out with du Plessis in the future, although that doesn’t prevent them from possibly fighting again. The only difference is Adesanya isn’t obsessed with tearing du Plessis apart like he was before they clashed on Saturday night.
“I’m not really desperate to get it back,” Adesanya said post-fight. “He gave me a lot of respect in there and I gave him his respect back. I already knew he was a fan of me. But now I’m a fan of his because we’ve been in there, we’ve done it. When I’m in South Africa, I’ll tap in with him. I said, ‘Look, we can hang out, but just so you know, when we have to fight again, I’m going to kill you.’ He’s lik,e ‘I’m going to kill you too.’ Respect is always there.
“Dricus is an African champion. But the three kings will reign supreme. That era [with Kamaru Usman and Francis Ngannou] right there was what set this off for people like him. He’s going to inspire another generation of African fighters as well. So congrats to him tonight. Until we meet again.”
There was a brief moment at the conclusion of the fight where it looked as if Adesanya was actually considering retirement as he removed his gloves while awaiting for his chance to speak to UFC color commentator Daniel Cormier.
Fighters removing their gloves and leaving them in the center of the cage is recognized as a symbol of retirement. Even du Plessis acknowledged it, saying, “Izzy, if you decide to retire tonight, thank you,” during his own post-fight interview.
It turns out Adesanya removing his gloves was much ado about nothing.
“People just read too much into shit,” Adesanya said. “For me, who knows what happens. Life is fleeting. Who knows what happens. [Du Plessis] might never come back if something happens. Any one of us in this room could go tomorrow. I try and take each fight, each moment as if it was my last.
“I only took the gloves off because it was tight after the fight. He’s got a strong head. I hit him with some shots so my hands were a bit, not broken, not even close, but just a little bit sore. So that’s why I took the gloves off. Nothing about retiring. No, I told you I’m not f*cking leaving. I’m not f*cking leaving until I want to leave.”
While he promises that he’s far from finished, Adesanya isn’t putting a timeline on a return for his next fight.
Because nothing is certain in life, much less the UFC, Adesanya hopes fans appreciate all of his performances, because he knows eventually the end will come.
“You’ll see me again when you see me again,” Adesanya said. “Enjoy me while I’m here because yous will miss me when I’m gone.”
UFC athlete Mackenzie Dern was taken down and submitted by Ffion Davies during their match at the Craig Jones Invitational hosted in Las Vegas this past weekend. Millions of dollars were awarded to the winners of the event, but Wales’ Ffion Davies took the headlines with her impressive throw and grappling work.
Ffion Davies
The Welsh-born Ffion Davies is carving a name for herself as being one of the all-time greats in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Ffion Davies has achieved remarkable success in grappling competitions. She won first place at the ADCC in 2022 and secured the top spot at the IBJJF World Championship in both 2022 and 2023. In the NOGI category, she claimed first place at the IBJJF World Championship in 2018, 2021, and 2023. Additionally, she succeeded at the IBJJF European Open in 2019 and 2020, as well as at the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals in 2019. Davies also took first place in the UAEJJF Grand Slam in London in both 2019 and 2020.
Mackenzie Dern
The American-Brazilian Mackenzie Dern is a UFC fighter but comes from an incredibly decorated background in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Mackenzie Dern has an impressive list of achievements in the world of grappling. She secured first place at the ADCC Championship in 2015 and also won the IBJJF World Championships that same year. In the NOGI category, she took first place at the IBJJF World Championships in 2015. Dern continued her winning streak by claiming first place at the IBJJF Pan American Championships in both 2015 and 2016.
Ffion Davies vs. Mackenzie Dern
Despite her background in grappling, the UFC’s Mackenzie Dern was out of her element when it came to rolling against Ffion Davies at the CJI. In the second of their meeting, Davies tosses Dern with a very impressive head and arm throw, then angles to achieve a perfect inverted armbar forcing the tap.
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See the highlights below:
Top female grappler Ffion Davies made easy work of Mackenzie Dern at CJI. pic.twitter.com/20ULqfCoVF
— Anton Tabuena (@antontabuena) August 18, 2024
Ladies THIS is how you perform a head and arm throw. Absolutely insane submission from Ffion Davis on Mackenzie Dern pic.twitter.com/RAvZdTvEPw
Lightweight Dan Hooker entered his UFC 305 main card match against fifth-ranked Mateusz Gamrot ranked eleventh in the division. “The Hangman” picked up a split decision win and injected new life into his plans of fighting for a UFC title.
Hooker was hurt early in the fight but battled back and continued to press forward. In the last two rounds, Hooker had Gamrot fighting off his back leg. It was a closely contested match and earned ‘Fight of the Night’ honors. Following the win, Hooker spoke with commentator Daniel Cormier and was fired up to say the least.
“How you like me know? How you like me now,” Hooker yelled into the microphone. “I’m going to be in the Top 5. Look at me now. I want them all, brother. I want the BMF. I want Conor McGregor. I want a title eliminator. I want everything.”
The win was the third in a row for the 34-year old New Zealander. For Gamrot, the loss to Hooker snapped a three-fight winning streak.
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