CombatSports.org

UFC

Add Du Plessis to the list of UFC champions seeking gold in two divisions. But the South African wants to knock off the two most dangerous men at 185 before a 205 pound title shot.

Dricus Du Plessis may be the UFC middleweight title holder, but it feels like he’s currently in a holding pattern as the UFC waits for their former 185 pound champ to come back and fight.

Israel Adesanya vs. Dricus Du Plessis is the obvious fight to make next, but things are complicated by Adesanya’s current leave of absence from competition. There has been talk that the fight could take place in Perth, Australia for August. But nothing is official yet.

In a new interview on YouTube, “Stillknocks” gave an update on the “Stylebender” fight and even paid his rival some compliments in the process.

“I know what the people wanna see, and I go and do it,” Du Plessis said. “And fighting Israel Adesanya is by far the fight that everybody wants to see. There’s a lot of history there. There’s animosity there. I don’t see why we are not fighting. Well, I mean, I understand why we’re not in South Africa at the moment, although that would have been great, but Adesanya doesn’t have a lot of years in the sport left. Two years if that much.”

“What he’s done in the sport is spectacular, it’s amazing,” he added. “And as an athlete, if you don’t respect Israel, you are a moron. As a person, you can have your opinions, which I do. But when it comes to what he’s done in the sport, he is nothing short of spectacular. He’s he’s an incredible fighter, and fighting him is is going to cement my legacy. It’s gonna be it’s gonna be something it’s gonna be another feather in the cap, you know?”

“Beating a guy like Robert Whittaker, becoming a world champion, and then beating one of the greats like Israel Adesanya? How are you not motivated by that? I’ve seen Adesanya as my even when I wasn’t in the UFC. I’ve seen him as the guy that I need to beat to become the best. He set the bar. I mean, long before I was in the UFC, he was the champion, and he set the bar of what you need to be to be a champion.”

Du Plessis also commented on Sean Strickland, the fighter he took the belt off of to become champion. They had a close fight at UFC 297 in January, and there was some talk of a rematch if Adesanya wasn’t ready to return.

“To be quite honest with you, I would have been very happy with [the Strickland] fight,” Dricus said. “I would have loved that fight. It would have been a lot easier, if you ask me, because I’ve been in there full speed with him and I felt what he can do, and I felt the mistakes that I made. We didn’t call it mistakes. I’ll just put my foot on the gas quicker, and then I think I’ll get him out of there.”

“But that that’s not what the UFC wanted. I was happy to do it. Very happy. I have no problem with that whatsoever. Give me [Strickland], perfect. Give me Adesanya, perfect. And they went with Adesanya. Cool. And that’s it. That’s exciting. I’m happy either way.”

Du Plessis also confirmed his roadmap to potential double champion status: defeat Israel Adesanya, defeat Khamzat Chimaev, and then fight Alex Pereira for the 205 pound strap.

“If Khamzat beats Whittaker, beating Khamzat? That earns you a spot at light heavyweight,” he said. “If you look at the the greats, the boogeyman, everybody seems to be scared of Khamzat. I would love that fight.”

“But like I said, I have no problem defending my belt a few times before that. For now, my focus is 100% on the middleweight division and my next fight, which in all likelihood would be Israel Adesanya. And that’s where all my focus is. None of the other plans can come together without this.”

MMAmania.com – All Posts

submitted by /u/event_threads
[link] [comments]
MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Former NFL defensive standout and UFC fighter Greg Hardy suffered another brutal knockout loss.

Hardy faced Patrick Mailata at Thursday night’s Team Combat League boxing event in Los Angeles. The heavyweight bout ended in brutal fashion after Mailata had Hardy against the ropes and delivered a barrage of punches, and while a left hook really hurt Hardy, it was the follow up right hand that folded Hardy up against the ropes for the knockout win.

Check out video of the wild finish in the video below.

Hardy transitioned from the gridiron to combat sports after being charged with domestic violence in 2014 and faced a subsequent four-game suspension in 2015, before the Dallas Cowboys chose not to re-sign the pro bowler. The 35-year-old went through the amateur MMA ranks with three quick knockouts, before having his first two pro bouts take place on the Contender Series, earning a contract after a pair of sub-minute knockout wins. Hardy competed 10 times inside the octagon, ending his run with the company with a promotional record of 4-5, 1 NC.

Since then, Hardy has transitioned to boxing, winning six of nine bouts. He also competed for BKFC and was knocked out by Josh Watson in the second round at KnuckleMania 3 in February 2023.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Dricus Du Plessis has his sights set on champ-champ status. But before ‘Stillknocks’ can focus on picking up a second undisputed belt, he’s got some work to do in the middleweight division.

In January, DDP scored a split-decision victory over Sean Strickland to claim the 185-pound crown, setting the stage for a long-awaited showdown with former two-time titleholder Israel Adesanya. When and where that takes place is yet to be determined, but Du Plessis is nonetheless excited for the opportunity to test his skills against one of the greatest fighters the sport has ever seen, solidifying his own legacy in the process.

“Beating a guy like Robert Whittaker, becoming a world champion, and then beating one of the greats like Israel Adesanya? How are you not motivated by that? I’ve seen Adesanya as my even when I wasn’t in the UFC,” Du Plessis said on The Sias du Plessis Show.

“I’ve seen him as the guy that I need to beat to become the best. He set the bar. I mean, long before I was in the UFC, he was the champion, and he set the bar of what you need to be to be a champion” (h/t MMA Mania).

Dricus Du Plessis plotting path to light heavyweight title

Should DDP get the job done against Israel Adesanya, he’ll turn his attention toward the winner of the UFC Saudi Arabia headliner between Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev.

Having already earned a win over ‘The Reaper’ at UFC 290, Du Plessis understandably sees more value in a potential fight with ‘Borz.’

Not only would it help his bid to become the greatest middleweight of all time — it would bring him one step closer to adding another title to his collection.

“If Khamzat beats Whittaker, beating Khamzat? That earns you a spot at light heavyweight,” he said. “If you look at the the greats, the boogeyman, everybody seems to be scared of Khamzat. I would love that fight.”

“But like I said, I have no problem defending my belt a few times before that. For now, my focus is 100% on the middleweight division and my next fight, which in all likelihood would be Israel Adesanya. And that’s where all my focus is. None of the other plans can come together without this.”

LowKickMMA.com

submitted by /u/idcman999 [link] [comments]

MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

submitted by /u/event_threads
[link] [comments]
MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Ben Askren has known Chael Sonnen for a long time, so when it was announced that Sonnen is heading to the boxing ring, he was a bit thrown off by the idea.

Sonnen faces his biggest competitive rival Anderson Silva in a boxing match on June 15 in Brazil. Askren, who ventured into the boxing world after retiring from MMA and was stopped by Jake Paul in 70 seconds in April 2021, doesn’t understand Sonnen’s motivation.

“Chael, I love you, I don’t know why you’re boxing,” Askren said on Funky and the Champ. “At least when I took my boxing fight, I thought [Jake Paul] sucked. Like, I thought he was really bad. Unfortunately for me, he’s not all that bad, and he’s kind of continued to be a boxer and win boxing matches.

“I really don’t know why Chael’s doing it. Anderson is a very good striker, he’s actually had multiple boxing matches. He did lose to Jake Paul, but he beat Julio Cesar Chavez [Jr.] — Darren Till is fighting him [at Paul vs. Tyson on July 20] — so I don’t know why [he’s boxing].”

Silva and Sonnen had a heated two-fight rivalry in UFC while Silva was middleweight champion. Their first bout at UFC 117 in August 2010 will be enshrined in the UFC Hall of Fame in June. Sonnen dominated Silva for the entirety of that fight, until “The Spider” threw up a Hail Mary triangle armbar submission in one of the most shocking comebacks in UFC history.

They met again two years later at UFC 148. This time, there was no drama, as Silva finished Sonnen with strikes early in the second round.

Silva has found some success in the boxing world — picking up wins over Tito Ortiz and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. — but lost a decision to Paul in his most recent bout in August 2022.

While Askren was surprised to hear Sonnen is boxing Silva, he wishes “The American Gangster” the best in the fight.

“They both gotta be now, late 40s, and they’re boxing? I just, I don’t know,” Askren said. “Listen, I am ‘Team Choose Your Own Life,’ do what you want, I’m not going to tell people what to do. But I don’t know. I guess we all have that competitive instinct in us, and we always want to live that out, but I don’t know if boxing is the best way to do it. I hope he does great.”

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Get Ready
| BJPenn.com

UFC