UFC 297: Dricus Du Plessis Hurls Zinger At Israel Adesanya: "He Lost His Shine"
After winning the UFC middleweight title in the UFC 297 headline attraction against Sean Strickland Saturday in Canada, Dricus Du Plessis kept his challengers short and sweet.
Du Plessis was forced out of a potentially highly-anticipated middleweight title fight last September between him and former champion Israel Adesanya due to injury and was replaced by Sean Strickland.
The potential fight was built as who "the real African champion" could be, but it never materialized. Then the middleweight carousel continued as Strickland became the new middleweight champion with an upset of Adesanya before subsequently fighting Du Plessis just four months later.
Du Plessis called his shot after earning a split decision against Strickland Saturday night.
"I'm really enjoying this," Du Plessis said when asked how winning the championship felt. "I would love...there's another guy who tried to take my shine. He lost his shine. Now I have your shine. Didn't get into the cage tonight, but Israel Adesanya, get your ass back to the UFC so we could settle the score."
Adesanya hinted at a five-year hiatus after relinquishing the belt to Strickland and had his response to Du Plessis' performance on "X" immediately following the fight.
"This arc in my story was written long ago," Adesanya wrote. "Our paths are destined to cross again. Stay tuned for the next episode, thanks for watching. We Write History"
At press time, UFC 300 is without a main event, and it is unclear whether the promotion intends to make Du Plessis vs. Adesanya next, but only time will tell.
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