Connect with us

MMA

Dricus Du Plessis had a message after big UFC comeback win

Published

on

Dricus Du Plessis had a message after big UFC comeback win
Former
Ultimate Fighting Championship champion Dricus Du
Plessis returned to winning ways at
UFC Oklahoma City.

Nearly a year after losing his middleweight belt to Khamzat
Chimaev, du Plessis returned to action in a five-rounder
against former welterweight champ Kamaru
Usman, earning a lopsided unanimous decision win. The South
African's return made him realize how much he loves and belongs in
the sport.

UFC champion Dricus Du Plessis explains his mindset after
beating Kamaru Usman

“Stillknocks” was clearly on top in the opening two rounds, with
Usman finding his range in the third frame before du Plessis
regained his momentum in the fourth. Usman found a second wind in
the final round, but it was too little too late for “The Nigerian
Nightmare,†who was on the wrong end of a 50-45, 49-46, 49-46
scorecard.

Having spent 11 months on the sidelines coming off a loss, du
Plessis believes that one can forget what it's like inside the
Octagon during a lengthy hiatus. However, as soon as the fight
commenced, he felt right at home.

“Especially when you are away for that kind of time, you almost
forget what it's like to be there, dancing under the lights,†du
Plessis said after the fight. “But man, tonight I just walked out
there again and I realized… This is what I live with… This is what
this is about… This is why I started this game. I loved going out
there and fighting, but more than that, I loved competing.â€

He further emphasized that the pressure he feels in front of
thousands of fans in attendance is exactly what gets the best out
of him.

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

MMA

UFC 331: Van vs. Pantoja 2, Tsarukyan vs. Ruffy live stream watch party

Published

on

UFC 331: Van vs. Pantoja 2, Tsarukyan vs. Ruffy live stream watch party

MMA Fighting has a live stream watch party for Saturday's UFC 331 event at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. In the main event, Joshua Van defends his flyweight title in a rematch against the man he won the championship from, Alexandre Pantoja in a heated rematch.

Join MMA Fighting's Mike Heck and Jed Meshew as they watch the main card and more for the promotion's upcoming numbered event in the City of Angels.

In the co-main event, top lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan faces knockout artist Mauricio Ruffy in a high-stakes, five-round contest.

Additionally, former Bellator champion Patricio Pitbull takes on Doo Ho Choi in the featherweight featured contest, while Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson battles Sean Sharaf in a heavyweight bout.

The UFC 331 main card opens with a light heavyweight tilt between Alonzo Menifield and Iwo Baraniewski.

Watch MMA Fighting's UFC 330 live stream Watch Party beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET / 5:30 p.m. PT with the featured preliminary fight between Marlon Vera and Charles Jourdain.

Continue Reading

MMA

Anything but Fighting: Edmen Shahbazyan answers random questions

Published

on

Anything but Fighting: Edmen Shahbazyan answers random questions

LOS ANGELES — UFC middleweight contender Edmen Shahbazyan joins MMA Fighting's Jose Youngs on #AnythingButFighting to talk about his favorite movies, music, foods, concerts, and more.

Shahbazyan (16-6) is looking to get back into the win column against Brunno Ferreira on the preliminary card of UFC 331. “The Golden Boy†previously dropped a unanimous decision win to Brendan Allen, snapping his three-fight win streak in the process. To date, Shahbazyan holds notable wins over Andre Petroski, André Muniz, Jack Hermansson, Brad Tavares, and Jack Marshman.

Continue Reading

MMA

Dana White says Ciryl Gane won’t be promoted to undisputed champion: ‘He’s still got to fight’

Published

on

Dana White says Ciryl Gane won’t be promoted to undisputed champion: ‘He’s still got to fight’

Ciryl Gane is NOT the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion.

On Monday, Tom Aspinall vacated his UFC heavyweight title after reinjuring his eyes in training, forcing him out of action indefinitely. As such, many expected that interim heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane — the man who caused Aspinall's original eye injuries when he poked him during their heavyweight title fight at UFC 321 — would be elevated to undisputed champion and then defend his belt; but not so fast.

“Does it make him the undisputed champion?†White asked when questioned about Gane. “No. He's still got to fight.â€

White added that he expects Gane's next fight, the bout for the title of undisputed champion, will be announced “very soon.â€

Ostensibly, Aspinall could face the winner of whatever that potential bout is, should he be ready to return to action by then. But White has no timeline on when that might be.

“I don't [know],†White said when asked how long Aspinall's will be out for. “Obviously, whenever he feels healthy again, whenever his eyes are healed, then we're ready for him.â€

Gane won the interim heavyweight title with a TKO win over Alex Pereira at UFC White House this summer. It was expected that Gane and Aspinall would unify their titles in a rematch this year, before Aspinall's setback ended those plans.

As for the rest of the heavyweight division, Aspinall's latest update seems to have left the UFC scrambling, with White not having a clear path forward, but saying the UFC will figure it out.

“We'll see how this whole thing plays out with Aspinall,†White said. “Ciryl will fight, and we'll see who becomes the champion. This isn't like this is the first time this has ever happened, and it's happening right now with Valentina Shevchenko, too. This is nothing new. This happens sometimes, and it's unfortunate. Not the best outcome, but it is what it is.â€

Continue Reading
Advertisement

OUR NEWSLETTER

Subscribe Us To Receive Our Latest News Directly In Your Inbox!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

Trending