Israel Adesanya expects Dorricus du Plessis to immediately go for a takedown in their next title fight.
Adesanya will challenge du Plessis for the middleweight title on Saturday in the main event of UFC 305 in Perth, Australia. An accomplished mixed martial artist, du Plessis has nearly as many knockouts (9) as submissions (10) in his 19 career fights. Though du Plessis is primarily considered a wrestler, he has proven his striking ability at an elite level with knockout wins over the likes of Derek Brunson and Robert Whittaker at UFC.
But Adesanya, regarded as one of the greatest strikers in the sport’s history, doubts whether du Plessis is up for a fight. The former Glory Kickboxing star believes “Stilnox” will go for a takedown from the get-go, but he’s prepared for that strategy. “The Last Stylebender,” who boasts a 77% takedown defense, recalls defeating some of the best wrestlers in the past.
UFC 305: du Plessis vs. Adesanya airs Saturday at 10pm ET on ESPN+. Order now! “I think he’s going to come at me right away,” Adesanya recently told Stake.com. “I don’t think he’s going to want to get into a long fistfight with me. That’s what people always say, but I’ve shown before that I can wrestle too. Maybe not like other people, but I can wrestle too. That’s why I’m a world champion.”
Duplessis’ calculated, brawling style has consistently led to upsets on the biggest stages, but Adesanya believes it gives him the best opportunity to pull off the highlight-reel knockouts he has delivered so many times in his career. That said, Adesanya isn’t looking for a big flash in the action.
“Definitely. He’s a guy who fights his own way and he’s had a lot of success, but it makes him very vulnerable,” Adesanya said. “When you fight a guy like me who is so accurate and lethal, it’s good… there are always highlights. The way I fight always produces highlights and that’s a great bonus, but I’m not looking for them, it just comes naturally.”
