Dricus Du Plessis successfully defended his middleweight title for the second time with a dominant unanimous decision victory over Sean Strickland in their rematch at UFC 312 in Sydney.
Following the fight, Du Plessis turned his attention to light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, who was in Strickland’s corner. While he expressed interest in a future showdown with “Poatan,” he made it clear that his immediate focus is on Khamzat Chimaev.
“I have the utmost respect for Alex Pereira,” Du Plessis said. “I think he is the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. I respect everything he’s accomplished in such a short time in the UFC — coming from another sport and achieving what he has. But yes, I want to share the octagon with that man. I want to beat a guy — I’ve beaten [Israel] Adesanya, who has beaten him. I know I can beat him, and at 205 [pounds], one hundred percent.”
The likelihood of a fight with the UFC light heavyweight king happening soon is slim, as Pereira is set to defend his light heavyweight title against Magomed Ankalaev next month in the main event of UFC 313.
For now, Du Plessis is content with a fight against the undefeated Chimaev.
“Khamzat’s first,” Du Plessis said. “I told [Pereira], ‘Please beat Ankalaev.’ No hate against Ankalaev — I just want to beat Alex Pereira. It’s nothing personal against Ankalaev, it’s just Pereira. He’s already a legend in this sport, and it would be amazing to beat him for my legacy. I want to be the greatest to ever do this. But Khamzat is next. Khamzat is next. I want to make sure that this belt — the middleweight title — has no questions left about who the greatest middleweight is.
“I know you have Anderson Silva — in my mind, he is the GOAT of this division—and you have Adesanya, who has done incredible things. But it’s not just about how many times you defend. It’s about who you fight, how you defend it, and what period of time you’ve done it in. I want to make sure that there’s no question that I am the best middleweight before moving up. So I’m not rushing to fight Alex Pereira next. No, no, no. I want Khamzat next. I think he deserves a hiding.”
