Israel Adesanya thinks 'stubborn' UFC champ Dricus Du Plessis beats Sean Strickland again

Israel Adesanya sees UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis’ relentlessness helping him prevail against Sean Strickland.

Du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC) is expected to defend his title against Strickland (29-6 MMA, 16-6 UFC) next – the man he dethroned by split decision at UFC 297 to claim the belt. Du Plessis notched his first title defense when he submitted Adesanya in the fourth round at UFC 305. Adesanya, who is coming off back-to-back title losses to Strickland and Du Plessis, shed light on how he thinks a rematch between Du Plessis and Strickland would go.

“They already fought before. I fought both of them,” Adesanya said on “The Adam Carolla Show” “I think Du Plessis might get it done again. He’s just so weird. The way he fights is awkward. He’s stubborn. No matter how tired he gets, he’ll still just throw, just to stop you in your tracks or stop you from doing what you’re doing. And he’ll just throw and hope. It wouldn’t really land, but it would stop what you’re trying to progress.”

Adesanya (24-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC) provided an update on his future. He plans on competing soon and will wait to see how the middleweight division shakes out in the next couple of months.

In his first middleweight title reign, Adesanya notched five title defenses until he ran into Alex Pereira at UFC 281. He was able to reclaim his belt with a knockout of Pereira at UFC 287 before dropping two straight to Strickland and Du Plessis.