Dricus Du Plessis remains the middleweight champion of the UFC! In his first title defense this Saturday (17th) at UFC 305 in Perth, Australia, the South African defeated Israel Adesanya by submission via rear-naked choke at 3:38 of the 4th round.
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The first round was very balanced. Du Plessis was more aggressive and attempted more, but Adesanya was the one who had more precision and landed the better strikes, particularly punishing the champion’s body.
In the second round, the South African effectively utilized takedowns – there were three – and dominated the round with ground fighting, keeping the Nigerian held down and preventing Adesanya from fighting standing up.
In the third, the two stayed on their feet for five minutes, and we saw intense exchanges. Adesanya, once again, was more precise while Du Plessis had more volume.
The fourth round continued with Adesanya on top of the champion, landing good strikes, but it was Du Plessis who delivered the final blow. After a solid straight punch, Israel staggered and went down. Dricus capitalized, went all out, secured a rear-naked choke, and finished the fight, retaining his title.