After becoming the UFC Middleweight Champion at the first time of asking at UFC 297, we have decided to take a deep dive into the MMA career of Dricus du Plessis. Read on to find out more about du Plessis’ record, his UFC record and how many knockouts he has under his belt in MMA.
Dricus du Plessis Record
Dricus du Plessis turned professional back in 2013 with a debut knockout victory against Tshikangu Makuebo in Gauteng, South Africa at EFC 21. Since then, du Plessis has had another 22 professional MMA fights, winning all but two of them.
Thus far, du Plessis’ career has been a stellar one in MMA to date. ‘Stillknocks’ has some huge wins in recent time in the UFC over the likes of Robert Whittaker, Darren Till, Derek Brunson and of course most recently Sean Strickland to name but a few.
As previously mentioned, Dricus du Plessis made his professional MMA debut over 10 years ago now. He won his first four fights in the EFC organisation, before suffering the first defeat of his career. The South African was defeated via submission by Garreth McLellan for the EFC Middleweight Title.
However, the 30-year-old didn’t let that loss define him. Dricus du Plessis bounced back with eight straight victories. These wins included capturing the EFC Middleweight Title, as well as winning the KSW Welterweight Championship on debut in the organisation.
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Then came the second defeat of du Plessis’ career. After beating Roberto Soldić in his previous fight to become KSW Welterweight Champion, Dricus du Plessis then lost the rematch via knockout. After that defeat, the South African had two more fights in KSW and EFC respectively, before signing to the UFC.
Du Plessis’ UFC debut came in October 2020 in Abu Dhabi, UAE. The middleweight contender put in an emphatic display on debut, knocking out Markus Perez inside the very first round of the fight. After that, du Plessis’ second UFC fight came against Trevin Giles.
This fight was even more emphatic, with Dricus du Plessis winning a ‘Performance of the Night’ UFC bonus award. He emphatically knocked out Giles in the second round of their fight at UFC 264, extending his record to 16-2.
Next up for Dricus du Plessis in his third UFC fight was Brad Tavares. This is the only time he has gone the distance, but the South African did get his hand raised regardless. Then came a huge step up against Darren Till. Du Plessis rose to the occasion, submitting ‘The Gorilla’ in Round 3 of their 185-pound bout.
At UFC 285 in March 2023, Dricus du Plessis was back on the knockout train, beating Derek Brunson after the American was stopped by his corner. Another emphatic victory, with Dricus du Plessis moving swiftly up the UFC middleweight rankings. Next up was a fight with former champion Robert Whittaker.
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Then came the biggest win of his career, earning his a UFC Title shot. Dricus du Plessis’ was a huge underdog with UFC betting sites when facing former UFC middleweight king Robert Whittaker at UFC 290, but tore the script and defeated ‘Bobby Knuckles’ via knockout in emphatic fashion.
That set up his maiden title shot against Sean Strickland in the main event of UFC 297 for the UFC Middleweight Title. The fight was incredibly close, but the South African got his hand raised, winning the 185-pound world title at the first time of asking against ‘Tarzan’.
That takes us up to now in the career of Dricus du Plessis. There is no doubt that ‘Stillknocks’ is one of the best 185-pound fighters in the world and is a deserving champion. Not only that, but he is always in entertaining fights and will fight any man put in front of him.
The list of names the 30-year-old has defeated is pretty emphatic in a short space of time in the UFC. Sean Strickland, Derek Brunson, Darren Till and Robert Whittaker are just some of the stellar names Dricus du Plessis has defeated in his stellar UFC career to date.
Be sure to claim the various sports betting apps and UFC free bets available on the SportsLens site ahead of du Plessis’s next fight.
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