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Watch Disguised UFC Champ Dricus du Plessis Sing His Heart Out on ‘The Masked Singer'

Dressed up as a wildebeest, South Africa's du Plessis impressed in his singing performance.

Christopher De Santiago

Jan 20, 2024; Toronto, Canada, USA; Dricus Du Plessis (blue gloves) celebrates defeating Sean
Jan 20, 2024; Toronto, Canada, USA; Dricus Du Plessis (blue gloves) celebrates defeating Sean / Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Let it be known that Dricus du Plessis can carry a tune.

In his latest career move, the UFC Middleweight Champion made an appearance on South Africa's edition of "The Masked Singer", a popular TV show that sees stars perform songs in mascot costumes, only to be unmasked when they are eliminated.

READ MORE: UFC Champ Dricus Du Plessis on Next Fight: ‘Does He Really Deserve a Title Shot?'

Du Plessis dressed up as a wildebeest for his rendition of the hit song "Counting Stars" by OneRepublic. You can watch his quite impressive performance below.

"I love music. I sing a lot in the shower. I sing a lot in the car. So I thought, let's go sing– let's take this car-singing to the world," du Plessis said of doing the show. "I try everything. I've done many sports in my life. I've played with musical instruments in my life. This was just another one to tick off in the box."

Following his stellar song, the secret eventually came out to the audience that "Wildebeest" was none other than South Africa's very own UFC Champion. "No way!" one of the hosts shouted as the eliminated du Plessis' identity was revealed.

Fighting under the UFC lights is one thing, but singing live in front of the masses is a different battle altogether. Though, stage fright didn't come into play as the masked du Plessis sang like nobody was watching.

"Performing under the mask was actually, I think, a lot easier than performing without it, 'cause that's where the stage jitters can come in," du Plessis added. "The song that I sang tonight... [Counting Stars] it's a hard song to sing. It's a favorite song, but yeah, I mean, it was hard for the voice."

"I think the outfit's amazing, I loved it," the South African fighter said of his wildebeest costume. "I thought it was spot-on. Character-wise, it was, it's a great outfit."

Du Plessis' break-out performance on The Masked Singer follows after UFC Lightweight Michael Chandler, who was the first fighter to strike a chord on the show, butchering Britney Spears' hit song "...Baby One More Time" in 2022.

And yes, Michael Chandler was eliminated from the show, too.

READ MORE: UFC 303: Michael Chandler Dreams of Shattering Khabib’s PPV Record vs. Conor McGregor

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Christopher De Santiago

CHRISTOPHER DE SANTIAGO

Christopher De Santiago is a 22 year-old journalist from Gainesville, Texas with years of experience covering MMA.