Ahead of his title fight, the 185lbser, Dricus Du Plessis says there’s no time to celebrate his 30th birthday. Du Plessis, 30, thanked all his fans including Springbok World Cup-winning captain Siya Kolisi, for their messages of goodwill and support. The 20-2 fighter faces Sean Strickland this weekend, at UFC 297. Recently, “Stillknocks” (at a 95% finish rate) berated ‘33% finish rate’ Strickland and vowed to finish him.
Du Plessis will fight Strickland for the UFC middleweight title this coming weekend in Toronto, Canada. After a long squabble, initiated by the UFC 296 Media Day presser, the title contender is up for the challenge.
The fighter recently conveyed a final message to fellow countrymen before boarding his flight for UFC 297. Taking to X, here’s what he said –
Thank you for all the birthday wishes, I appreciate each and every one of you. Unfortunately no celebrating until the job is done and history is made...
Recently speaking to TNT Sports’ Caroline Pearce, the fighter mentioned that he thinks Strickland is subpar in his MMA acumen. Concurrently, Mayra Bueno Silva, who co-mains the fight card, recently lauded Du Plessis as ‘a good fight‘ while snubbing the unhinged ‘Tarzan’.
Thank you for all the birthday wishes, I appreciate each and every one of you!
Unfortunately no celebrating until the the job is done and History is made 🇿🇦🇿🇦 pic.twitter.com/kQddEmOt3v
— Dricus Du Plessis (@dricusduplessis) January 15, 2024At 28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC, Strickland recently won the MMA Junkie’s 2023 Male Fighter of the Year award. But his 3-0 highlight run for the past year does not put Du Plessis out of balance, if anything, he is looking forward to it even more.
Why is Dricus Du Plessis called Stillknocks?
Dricus Du Plessis has risen to become the UFC’s #2 185lber and has defeated every opponent he has faced in the weight class. Dricus has now earned a title shot against champion, Sean Strickland at UFC 297.
The most forthright explanation for his nickname is that it comes from a renowned sleeping pill – ‘Stillnox’. Likewise, the fighter out of CIT Performance Institute finishes (‘sleeps‘) opponents with ease. With a 95% finish rate, he is only just beginning.
The fighter recently stepped onto his 30th year. Du Plessis, an avid Rugby fan, has a lot of South African support behind him and the Springboks RWC captain, Siya Kolisi recently took to his IG to personally wish him.
While his fighting skills do not go unnoticed, the likes of commentator, Joe Rogan and veteran Daniel Cormier have lauded his skill and striking. The fighter is on an eight-win streak, averaging 79% (approx) body strikes and 73% leg strikes in his latest outings.
“Stillknocks” also boasts quite a handful of clinch statistics under this belt. He has a 100% ‘Takedown Accuracy, in two of his last three face-offs.
The fighter has subsequently earned 19/20 of his victories in way of stoppages. He’s finished eight of those wins in Round 1. Du Plessis averages 6.95 significant strikes per minute, the highest connected rate in divisional history.
His latest victories came against the likes of industry greats, such as Darren Till, Derek Brunson, and Robert Whittaker. 3/5 of his last square-offs were TKO wins.
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