Dricus Du Plessis Responds To Dana White’s Jibes After UFC 293 Withdrawal

Dricus Du Plessis isn’t happy about Dana White bad-mouthing him for pulling out of a title fight. The South African fighter recently responded to the UFC president’s comments about him at the UFC 293 post-fight presser. 

For context, Du Plessis was originally expected to face Israel Adesanya for the middleweight title last weekend. After Du Plessis’ incredible second-round knockout over Robert Whittaker at UFC 290, ‘Stillknocks’ cemented his spot as the next 185-pound title contender. The South African middleweight also shared a heated face-off against Adesanya after his bout, further promoting their rivalry and hyping fans about their fight.

However, a few weeks later, Dricus Du Plessis revealed that he picked up an injury and wouldn’t be able to fight Adesanya on such a short turnaround. As a result, Israel Adesanya lambasted his unprofessionalism and called Sean Strickland to replace him. 

As we all know, Strickland emerged victorious against ‘The Last Stylebender’ via unanimous decision. While Adesanya was expected to breeze through ‘Tarzan,’ the 32-year-old American shocked everyone with his dominant performance. At the post-fight presser, Dana White heaped praise on Strickland for accepting a title fight on short notice. He also shaded Dricus Du Plessis for pulling out of the same and hinted at ‘Stillknocks’ losing his championship spot. 

Dricus Du Plessis has finally responded to the UFC president’s comments about his withdrawal. The South African native claimed that while he expected repercussions for pulling out of a title fight, he didn’t understand why White was upset about him suffering an injury. 

In an interview with FightWave, Dricus Du Plessis pointed out how active he’s been. He clarified that he rarely rejects an opportunity to fight and has accepted fights on short notice many times. However, his injury rendered him helpless this time around. He then praised Sean Strickland for beating the odds and winning the middleweight title. However, he admitted he would have loved to be the one to beat Israel Adesanya.