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Israel Adesanya & Dricus Du Plessis First Heated Face-off Ahead of UFC 305

UFC's biggest grudge match of the year draws closer.

Mathew Riddle

UFC

The biggest UFC grudge match of the year is almost upon us.

UFC 305 News: Sean Strickland Reacts to Dricus Du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya

Israel Adesanya will challenge again for the middleweight throne when he takes on champion Dricus Du Plessis in the main event of UFC 305 on August 17.

Tickets for the event are now on presale, and to celebrate the occasion, the UFC hosted an 'On Sale' press conference for the event on July 3. During this, Adesanya and Du Plessis came together for their first official face-off, a heated display that saw the fighters square off for over a minute.

View the entire press conference below, courtesy of UFC on YouTube.

UFC News: ‘Hurt’ Robert Whittaker Brutally Honest on Dricus Du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya

Adesanya vs. Du Plessis Beef Explained

Tempers were always flared between Adesanya and Du Plessis as they potshotted each other with remarks about their heritage. Du Plessis, a native South African, and Adesanya, a Nigerian-born Kiwi, repeatedly had verbal spats about who was a rightful African fighter/champion. It's been an ugly, racially-fuelled rivalry with a lot of steam.

The drama peaked during the conclusion of Du Plessis' victory over Robert Whittaker at UFC 290. Adesanya burst into the Octagon and berated his rival with racial slurs. Though, in MMA, things don't always go as planned. Adesanya lost his title to Sean Strickland, who then lost it to Du Plessis at UFC 297. Now, the two fiery middleweights will have a chance to settle the feud in Perth, Australia this August.

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Mathew Riddle
MATHEW RIDDLE

Mathew is a UK-based combat sports journalist, graphic designer, and SEO expert with over five years of experience in digital marketing and a dedicated four-year track record in MMA journalism. He joined MMAKO in 2023. Mathew's insights have been featured on The Fight Fanatic, Heavy on UFC, Fansided, and Sportskeeda. Reach him at mr@thefightfanatic.com.

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