A win is not enough: Dricus du Plessis aims to prove he’s the ‘best in the world’
· Citizen
South Africa’s former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweight champion, Dricus du Plessis, believes victory this weekend might not be enough for him to get another shot at the title.
Du Plessis tamely surrendered his title just under a year ago to Russia’s Khamzat Chimaev and will be desperate to get his hands on that middleweight strap sooner rather than later.
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Since that night at UFC319 in August 2025, Chimaev has relinquished his title to American Sean Strickland – a man who Du Plessis has beaten twice.
The South African begins his road back to glory on Sunday morning (SA time) against former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman of Nigeria at UFC Fight Night in Oklahoma City.
“Just a win does not necessarily guarantee me a shot at the title, but going out there and putting up a performance that eliminates any doubt that I am the best in the world, that’s what’s going to guarantee me another title shot,” Du Plessis said on Friday.
Improving his skills
Although Usman is moving up a weight class to fight Du Plessis, the Nigerian is a very accomplished wrestler, meaning this will be a good test for the South African, who has spent most of the last year improving his skills on the ground.
The loss to Chimaev exposed this issue and Du Plessis only saw positives and used this setback to strengthen his game even further.
“My mission in life is to be the most complete and greatest fighter of all time and without this loss I would have never known I had these issues,” Du Plessis told New York Post Sports.
“The loss is in the past, but what I learned from it will only help me in the future.”
Du Plessis is the No 2 ranked fighter in the UFC middleweight division, so a solid victory this weekend will go a long way towards him getting another shot at the title.