UFC middleweight champ Dricus du Plessis says Australia’s Robert Whittaker is the man most deserving to face him next, but has been “done over” by the company.
It comes as Australia endured a mixed night at UFC 305, with five of eight Aussies all suffering losses – among them fan favourites Steve Erceg, Tai Tuivasa and Junior Tafa.
Yet while Australia’s No.1 female fighter Casey O’Neill won before a sold out RAC Arena crowd – and both lightweight Tom Nolan and featherweight Jack Jenkins announced themselves as undeniable rising stars – it was the nation’s first champion who may have received the biggest win.
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Speaking after retaining his UFC middleweight crown against Israel Adesanya, du Plessis suggested it should be Whittaker who fights him next.
It comes as UFC president Dana White has already suggested American Sean Strickland is next, while light heavyweight king Alex Pereira also suggested via social media he could return to the division.
Unthinkable only a year ago, DDP has suddenly joined the conversation for greatest middleweight of all time after submitting Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 in Perth.
The win, which came via rear naked choke in the fourth round, represented the first time Adesanya has been submitted in a career that will undoubtedly see him enter the Hall of Fame.
It also means du Plessis has now beaten all three of the division’s biggest names – Adesanya, Whittaker and Strickland.
Already, the UFC CEO has suggested former champ Strickland will be first in line for a rematch with DDP, given he took the champ five rounds when losing the title in January.
Whittaker, meanwhile, was finished in the second round of what was a title eliminator against DDP at UFC 290 last year.
Since then however, Strickland has only had the sole decision win over Paulo Costa while Bobby Knuckles has also earned a decision against Costa and then kayoed rising Russian fighter Ikram Aliskerov within a round.
Whittaker is now slated to fight Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 308 in the Middle East.
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Yet when asked which fighter is now most deserving to face him next, du Plessis did not hesitate, replying: “Robert Whittaker.
“Robert Whittaker deserves the shot.
“I think he’s been done over.
“Sean Strickland’s only saving grace is the fact that he went to decision with me.
“That’s it.
“So, yeah, Robert Whittaker beat Costa in more spectacular fashion I believe than Strickland did.
“Then Whittaker stepped up to fight Khamzat, who pulled out.
“So Whittaker fights, not a nobody, it’s a great fighter, Ikram.
“Amazing fighter, really good.
“Whittaker makes it look like he’s fighting an amateur.
“And what does he got for it? Nothing
“So then he says ‘OK, I’ll fight Khamzat again’.
“And if he beats Khamzat you’re not giving him a title shot?
“So he’s getting the short end of the stick unfortunately.
“But that’s not on me.
“I’ll fight whoever.
“Strickland right now is the fight people want to see so that’s what they’ll get.
“But Whittaker is definitely the one being done over in my opinion.
“He’s definitely more deserving but, you know, life’s not fair.”
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Elsewhere, there were plenty of other bright spots for the Aussies, including the return to form of Australia’s best female fighter O’Neill and wins for Jenkins and Nolan.
Jenkins, in particular, looked outstanding when finishing Brazilian herbert Burns in the third.
However it was a tough night for the card’s biggest local stars, with cult heavyweight Tuivasa suffering his fifth straight defeat and Erceg also upset via TKO.
Only three months after fighting for the UFC flyweight title, Erceg was sensationally dropped twice in the first round before being finished on the ground by New Zealand’s Kai Kara-France.
An Aucklander who doubles as an NRL wrestling coach with the Warriors, Kara-France initially dropped the Perth native with a brutal left hand and then, after he bravely found his feet, a right.
He then swarmed on Erceg before the referee waved it off with 56 seconds still remaining in the first round.
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Tuivasa, meanwhile, suffered a split decision loss against Jairzinho Rozenstruik.
While two judges gave the fight to Rozenstruik 30-27 and 29-28, a third official, Howie Booth, bizarrely scored the fight for Tuivasa 30-27.
So bad was that scorecard considered to be, Booth was removed from his spot judging the co-main event between Erceg and kara-France.
Unfortunately for Tuivasa, the turning point appeared to come in the second round, when badly injuring his right leg while attempting a kick.
That allowed Rozenstruik to swarm, deliver a series of vicious blows and win the round with every judge bar booth.
Queenslander Nolan, meanwhile, continued his exciting rise in the UFC lightweight division, overcoming an illegal knee while grounded to score a convincing win over American Alex Reyes.
Despite being kneed while grounded in the first round – which saw the fight paused and Reyes warned — Nolan recovered strongly to drop his rival in the second and almost submit him midway through the third.
The Brisbane fighter dubbed ‘Big Train’ eventually took the win on all three judges’ scorecards, 30-27, 30-37 and 329-28.
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A product of Dana White’s Contender series, Nolan suffered a shock loss in his UFC debut but has since responding strongly with consecutive wins over Victor Martinez and Reyes.
Australia’s best female fighter Casey O’Neill also made a strong return to form, with the $2.05 TAB upsetting Brazil’s Luana Santos with a convincing decision win.
The result ends an incredibly tough couple of years for the Gold Coaster who, now based out of Las Vegas, has gamely fought back from both an ACL injury and consecutive Octagon losses.
Against Santos, O’Neill looked strong throughout to win on all three scorecards: 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26.
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Source Agencies
