Not that long ago people still argued whether Dricus du Plessis belonged with the real middleweights. Then he took the belt, beat the names that used to sit above him, and lost it to Khamzat Chimaev. Fine. He still walks into 185 looking like trouble. This Saturday he fights Kamaru Usman, so here are the wins that actually built the guy.
Robert Whittaker: door kicks open
Before UFC 290 I still had doubts. Whittaker was the exam: former champ, hard to put away, ugly matchup on paper for a pressure fighter still proving himself. Du Plessis knocked him cold in round two. After that, the title talk stopped sounding like hype from his camp.
Sean Strickland: ugly night, gold belt
UFC 297 was close and kind of miserable for five rounds. Split decision. Du Plessis walked out champion anyway. Pressure and volume carried the cards. First South African UFC champ too, which still lands differently in a sport that does not hand out those firsts often.
Israel Adesanya: the receipt
Beating Strickland was one thing. Submitting Adesanya in round four at UFC 305 was the receipt. If you were still calling him lucky, that finish shut you up. I know it shut me up.
Darren Till, then the climb
December 2022. Three UFC wins already, then Till. The Englishman started better and had Du Plessis in early water. Round three submission the other way. That was the Top 10 climb, not a tune-up.
Brunson was the wrestling chore nobody wanted, and Du Plessis still stopped him in round two. Giles ate a clean KO the year before, after a quick debut finish of Markus Perez. Brad Tavares by submission filled the gap before Till.
Short version: Giles and Brunson got him noticed, Till got him ranked, Whittaker got him a shot, Strickland got him the belt, Adesanya made the belt look real. Usman is next.
