“The official prediction is I’m betting on Dricus,” MMAnews quoted the Nigerian as saying. “Will the fight go the full distance? I’m going to say no. It’s not that I don’t respect Shawn or his skills, the guy has beaten me, so of course I respect his skills, but I’m betting on Dricus to sucker punch him.”
Last September, Israel Adesanya suffered a sensational defeat against Sean Strickland, losing to the American by unanimous decision over five rounds, while South Africa’s Dricus Du Plessis scored an equally surprising victory in July in a challenger fight against Robert Whittaker, finishing the Australian by technical knockout in the second round.
The middleweight title fight between Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis will be the main event of UFC 297, which takes place Jan. 20 in Toronto, Canada.
According to reports, Israel Adesanya will be attending the fight in person, and will possibly challenge the winner of this confrontation.