“Wow I didn’t see that coming,” the South African fighter wrote on social media. “It makes no difference to me – the belt is going home.”
Two months ago, Dricus Du Plessis defeated Robert Whittaker in a challenger fight, knocking out the Australian in the second round, but refused to fight the champion at UFC 293 in Sydney, conceding a title shot to Strickland.
In the end, the American, who entered the title fight as more than a six-fight underdog, authored one of the highest-profile upsets in mixed martial arts history, defeating the Nigerian in dominant fashion by unanimous 49-46 three-round decision.
UFC president, Dana White, stated after the event that Adesanya would get an immediate rematch, and also left a meaningful message to Du Plessis, saying that the fighters should not give up title fights.
The title fight with Adesanya was crucial for Du Plessis because of the public conflict between the two fighters over who was the real African.