{"id":521394,"date":"2024-01-23T10:04:35","date_gmt":"2024-01-23T08:04:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/betcentral.onpressidium.com\/?p=521394"},"modified":"2024-01-23T10:04:38","modified_gmt":"2024-01-23T08:04:38","slug":"now-they-know-du-plessis-proved-several-points","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/machibet777-app.com\/ufc\/now-they-know-du-plessis-proved-several-points\/","title":{"rendered":"Now They Know: Du Plessis Proved Several Points"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Dricus du Plessis hammered home several points when he defeated Sean Strickland<\/a> in the main event of UFC 297 in Toronto on Sunday morning to become the first-ever South African UFC champion, writes Quintin van Jaarsveld.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a bloody back-and-forth battle, the fighting pride of South Africa fulfilled his destiny as he beat his game American adversary by split decision at the Scotiabank Arena to etch his name in history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a highly technical war of attrition that netted both combatants an extra $50,000 for Fight of the Night, \u201cStillknocks\u201d showcased heart, skill and fight IQ in equal measure to reach the pinnacle of mixed martial arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heading into Sunday\u2019s showdown in the Great White North, the apex predator from Pretoria had won all six of his fights inside the Octagon, five of them by finish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After shocking the world by walking through former champion Robert Whittaker last July, he coined his now-famous phrase: \u201cHulle weet nie wat ons weet nie\u201d (They don\u2019t know what we know).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As impressive as the second-round TKO win over \u201cThe Reaper\u201d was, a large portion of international MMA pundits still questioned aspects of Du Plessis\u2019 game and whether he was championship material.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After going toe-to-toe and toppling \u201cTarzan\u201d at the weekend, the 30-year-old proudly proclaimed, \u201cSuid-Afrika, nou weet hulle wat ons weet!\u201d (South Africa, now they know what we know).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indeed, now they know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now they know what Du Plessis and seasoned South African MMA experts knew all along, that the baddest man in South Africa is the total package. Moreover, he proved with his title triumph that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bet Now: UFC <\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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1: He\u2019s The Best Middleweight In The World <\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In what was a close and thrilling fight, Du Plessis did enough to achieve his destiny. Like two of the three judges, I scored the five-round combat chess match three rounds to two in favour of the new 185-pound king.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s clear in my mind that Mzanzi\u2019s finest won rounds two to four, with Strickland starting and finishing strong to win the first and final rounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With that, Du Plessis proved he\u2019s the best middleweight on the planet, a position of power those who\u2019d followed his career since the start knew he had the God-given talent and singular focus to attain, even though no other South African had come close to claiming UFC gold before him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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UFC \ud83e\udd1d Afrikaans \ud83e\udd1d isiXhosa

A South African champion being crowned in South African style \ud83c\uddff\ud83c\udde6

Relive that iconic moment that Dricus Du Plessis became the new Middleweight Champion with our commentators \ud83c\udf99\ufe0f pic.twitter.com\/bymvzGvEkg<\/a><\/p>— SuperSport \ud83c\udfc6 (@SuperSportTV) January 21, 2024<\/a><\/blockquote>