UFC Quote: Dricus Du Plessis Sends Warning to Israel Adesanya: "I Would've Manhandled Him"
Dricus Du Plessis believes Israel Adesanya dodged a bullet with his current hiatus.
There is no love lost between Du Plessis and Adesanya. The two were expected to collide at UFC 293 in Sydney, Australia back in September. Initial plans went awry as Du Plessis' foot wasn't going to be healed in time. Sean Strickland stepped up and made the most of his opportunity, scoring a unanimous decision victory over Adesanya to capture the UFC Middleweight Championship.
Adesanya is currently on hiatus from pro MMA competition. Appearing on Submission Radio, Dricus Du Plessis said that if a showdown with the former two-time UFC middleweight champion comes to fruition, it'll be a bad night for "The Last Stylebender."
"The Izzy fight is a fight where I honestly believe that I would've grabbed him and I would've manhandled him, to be honest," Du Plessis said. "I know he has good takedown defense, but I don't think people understand the difference between myself and Israel Adesanya. If I would've grabbed him it would've been a very long night. Well, no, it wouldn't have been a long night [laughs]. Obviously, his striking is good. There's no way Israel Adesanya knocks me out."
Du Plessis will be getting his first UFC title shot when he meets Strickland in the main event of UFC 297. It'll be the first UFC pay-per-view event of 2024 and it takes place on January 20. Early betting odds have Strickland as a slight -148 favorite against the +124 Du Plessis, per DraftKings Sportsbook.
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