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Healing
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Dricus Du Plessis might just be MMA’s Rodney Dangerfield: the guy just can’t get no respect!

At 30 years of age, the first-ever UFC champion from South Africa is both at the top of his game and the top of the 185-pound division. His professional record stands at an impressive 21-2 with 19 victories via finish. He’s defeated former champions like Robert Whittaker and Sean Strickland, as well as veteran contenders like Brad Tavares and Derek Brunson.

Why then, are so many fans baffled by his success? He rarely enters fights as the betting favorite. Until Du Plessis defeated Whittaker, the general belief among fans was that Du Plessis was outright bad at MMA despite plenty of evidence to the contrary. Stopping the second most accomplished Middleweight of the last decade forcibly earned Du Plessis a bit of begrudging recognition, but even now, many don’t understand how Du Plessis keeps winning.

It’s ultimately a matter of substance vs. style. From a style stand point, “Stillknocks” does a lot wrong. His movement is herky-jerky rather than fluid. His punching mechanics are awkward. He tends to advance hard and retreat on straight lines, off-balance either way. Half the time, his takedowns resemble Rugby tackles more than scholastic wrestling.

If we’re talking about substance, however? From a strategic and effectiveness standpoint, Du Plessis’ success makes a ton of sense. Those Rugby tackles land him in top position fairly often for a man who primarily identifies as a striker. He’s finished more opponents via submission than knockout despite his brawler reputation, and he came closer to strangling Whittaker than a genuine jiu-jitsu master in “Jacare” Souza.

Then, there’s Du Plessis’ kickboxing, which is never pretty but has still stopped nine opponents and bloodied up one of the least hit strikers in the sport. There are standout factors in play here. Notably, Du Plessis is the rare high-volume striker with knockout power, and he is also unusual in consistently attacking all targets. He kicks hard with both legs up and down the body, throws punishing hooks at the mid-section, and will fire stiff jabs or overhands alike upstairs.

That kind of variety is unusual, especially at the bigger weight classes. Sean Strickland’s ability to stay in the pocket and avoid clean shots is probably his greatest attribute, but Du Plessis was able to slowly wear through those defenses because he attacked at all levels constantly. All of his early low kicks were checked, but his continued commitment to low kicks, body shots, and shifting combinations meant that they eventually did start to land. By the championship rounds, Strickland was absolutely feeling the damage and wear of Du Plessis’ offense despite his slick parrying.

Du Plessis is a very smart fighter with ugly mechanics. He makes sound strategic choices even if the means are sometimes confusing. Incredible physical attributes — can anyone at Middleweight match both Du Plessis’ raw strength and physical conditioning? — make it possible at the elite level, but that shouldn’t undermine Du Plessis’ tactical and technical abilities.

This weekend (Sat., Aug. 17, 2024), Du Plessis will finally collide with rival and former champion Israel Adesanya after more than a year of feuding. “Stylebender” will live up to his name and be the smoother, more elegant striker between the two. However, that’s no guarantee of victory … and Du Plessis has proven it a dozen times over.

To checkout the latest UFC 305 fight card and rumors click here.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Rough N’ Rowdy 25 over the course of the weekend brought more to it than just in-ring action – with the end of a hotly-contested boxing match ending in a mass brawl – as well an arrest by law enforcement.

Hosted by online media outlet, Barstool Sports, Rough N’ Rowdy saw it’s twenty fifth edition over the course of the weekend – headlined by a boxing match of sorts between Mikey Bets and his opponent, Zach Abel. 

Brawl and arrest happen in Rough N’ Rowdy 25 main event

Sharing the ring in the night’s main event, Bets and Abel had shared some verbals during a pre-fight brawl at the official weigh-ins the day prior. And following the culmination of their boxing fight this weekend at Rough N’ Rowdy 25, another coming together – this time unsanctioned broke out. 

Losing a split decision judging to Bets, the above-mentioned, Abel – clearly distraught with the decision he had found himself on the receiving end of, sucker punched one of his opponent’s cornermen. 

Rushing into the squared circle in a bid to separate both scrapping teams, security officials and other personnel – with Abel eventually floored to the canvas, where he was then stunningly slapped in cuffs by law enforcement officers. 

LowKickMMA.com

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

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Huge Praise
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UFC

This UFC 305 Countdown is all Izzy vs. Dricus, which tells you just how massive this fight taking place in Perth, Australia is.

After a less-than-thrilling weekend of MMA action, things are stepping back up next Saturday with UFC 305 on August 17th.

The card, set to go down in Perth, Australia, is headlined by a grudge match between middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis and two-time former champ Israel Adesanya. And in a somewhat unusual move, the UFC has decided to dedicate the entire hour of it’s Countdown show to that main event rather than share the spotlight with anyone else.

If you’ve got friends you plan on exposing to UFC for the first time this coming weekend, show them this UFC 305 Countdown show. It goes in-depth on both Israel Adesanya and Dricus Du Plessis, detailing their rise from the world of kickboxing to MMA stardom. There’s lots of highlights and knockouts and, of course, drama when Izzy and Dricus start circling each other.

That all stems from Du Plessis’ decision to style himself the first ‘real’ African champion.

“Dricus first came on my radar when he disrespected the Three Kings,” Adesanya told the Countdown crew. “He doesn’t respect African kings, African champions, because he sees himself different from us.”

“How the f— are you going to question our African-ness, like who the f— are you?” Izzy added. “He could have been like, ‘Lately there’s been a great reign of African champions, and that’s awesome. I look forward to taking my place as an African champion as well.’”

“I said I was the first fighter out of Africa who’s gonna bring the belt back home,” Du Plessis replied. “To where I live … This whole story was never about him, for me. It was about my own goal. My accomplishments. It was never to discredit his. If he got triggered, I don’t care. I don’t care if he’s angry about it. We’ll settle it.”

They will indeed settle it on August 17th at UFC 305.

Also on the card: a flyweight scrap between New Zealand’s Kai Kara-France and Australia’s Steve Erceg. Dan Hooker returns against Mateusz Gamrot. And it’s big boy Tai Tuivasa vs. “Bigi Boy” Jairzinho Rozenstruik in a heavyweight slobberknocker. Keep it tuned to MMA Mania for all the news and results from Down Under.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts