The UFC for the better part of two months was in search of a main event that could headline UFC 300. Dana White and his team wanted a main event that could live up to all the hype that had been building around it. In order to do so, White and his team contacted champions both past and present with an opportunity to headline UFC 300. One such champion who was contacted about potentially headlining UFC 300 was Israel Adesanya. Unfortunately, that fight never materialized.
Current UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis recently joined Cameron Saaiman for a podcast. During the podcast, Saaiman asked Du Plessis if UFC 300 was actually offered to him and if why he turned it down. The champion replied, saying,
“So obviously with the conversations of 300, that would have been a massive fight me and Izzy. It was on the table, 100%. One thing people don’t realise is, why would I go and start a camp once again injured?. Taking risks is one thing, I have been taking risks a lot. I am the champion now, I can fight when I am ready. I think Izzy misjudges himself as still being a champion and he’s not. You will fight when you get the opportunity, you don’t dictate when I fight.”
Du Plessis won the middleweight belt at UFC 297 in January this year. Unfortunately, in the fight against Strickland, Du Plessis suffered major cuts and was heavily bruised.
It would have taken Du Plessis a while to recover from that before he could start training again. With UFC 300 taking place in April, it did not make sense for Du Plessis to push himself more than needed. Thus, Du Plessis mentioned that it is Adesanya’s ‘misjudgment’ that they could fight at UFC 300.
Israel Adesanya to return later this year to take on Dricus Du Plessis?
Following his loss to Sean Strickland, Adesanya stated that he would be stepping away from the sport for a long time. However, Du Plessis’ title win sparked the competitive spirit in Israel Adesanya once again. ‘The Last Style Bender’ wants to return as soon as possible to take on Du Plessis.
Both camps have now confirmed that an offer to headline UFC 300 was presented to them. Unfortunately, since the champion was not ready it did not take place. However, the UFC will most likely book this fight for later in the year since both fighters are ready and willing to take on each other.
