Israel Adesanya Slams Sean Strickland’s ‘Stand-Up’ Pact to Dricus du Plessis as “Silly” Ahead of UFC 312 Rematch

Ahead of his rematch with Dricus Du Plessis, Sean Strickland has issued an unusual challenge: he wants Du Plessis to keep the fight standing up and avoid any grappling. While this may seem like an exciting proposition to some, former middleweight champion Israel ‘Stylebender’ Adesanya isn’t impressed. 

Adesanya’s statement comes just days after DDP himself declined the challenge, claiming ‘lions don’t make pacts with men’; a reference to Brad Pitt’s Achilles refusing to honor Eric Bana’s Hector from the 2004 blockbuster, Troy.

Izzy called Strickland’s approach “silly,” pointing out that it could be a risky move considering Du Plessis‘ well-rounded game. Du Plessis might look unorthodox and silly but he is as effective on his feet as he is on the ground. Besides, this is a mixed martial arts competition, so why would anyone limit themselves and fight with one hand behind their back, especially with a world title on the line? 

While in conversation with Damon Martin of MMA fighting, Adesanya placed his bets on DDP to win the title rematch and said, 

“He(Dricus) is great at what he does. Ah, its kind of silly. I only just heard about it from one of the other interviewers, yeah, it’s silly to say but I don’t think he means it because Dricus is good at what he does trying to take that away from him would not be proving you’re the best then.”

Strickland’s first fight with Du Plessis at UFC 297 had gone to the South African by a split decision. Interestingly, Du Plessis had outstruck Strickland in a mostly stand-up battle. 

However, Strickland insists that the champion’s striking is comparable to his.

Strickland cites Izzy win to explain why he’s favorite

Reflecting on their last fight, Strickland admitted his team could’ve made better adjustments, but he doesn’t consider it a robbery. He’s taking responsibility for not finishing the fight, but this time around, he’s determined to leave no doubt, either dominating Du Plessis for five rounds or finishing him outright.

Asserting that Du Plessis’ style was wild and inefficient, Strickland pointed out that the champ was being dominated by Adesanya and compared it to his domination of the ‘Stylebender’.

“I dog walked Izzy,” Strickland said. However, it remains to be seen if he can walk the talk in Sydney, Australia inside the octagon. As of right now, all we can do is enjoy the wild few weeks that are now expected in the lead-up to a Strickland fight.