Eben Etzebeth, Dricus du Plessis and Siya Kolisi celebrate at the UFC 305 event in Perth on 18 August 2024. (Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images)
- South Africa’s Dricus du Plessis retained his UFC middleweight world title by beating New Zealand’s Israel Adesanya in Perth on Sunday.
- In a tense fight, Du Plessis secured victory when choked out his opponent in the penultimate round.
- Springbok rugby stars Siya Kolisi and Eben Etzebeth were ringside and celebrated wildly after Du Plessis victory.
- For more sports news, visit the News24 Sport homepage.
Springbok captain Siya Kolisi and lock Eben Etzebeth celebrated wildly after their compatriot Dricus du Plessis’ UFC win in Perth on Sunday.
Du Plessis defended his UFC middleweight title after a fourth-round submission win over bitter rival Israel Adesanya in a blockbuster bout at Perth Arena.
Du Plessis was accompanied into the Octagon by Kolisi and Etzebeth, with his country’s national anthem thundering around the venue. The Boks were also in Perth having beaten Australia 30-12 in a Rugby Championship Test on Saturday.
After Du Plessis’ victory, Etzebeth and Kolisi could hardly contain their enthusiasm as they celebrated.
@news24 Springbok legends Siya Kolisi and Eben Etzebeth celebrate after Dricus du Plessis secured the defence of his world title. The back-to-back Rugby World Cup champions flanked Du Plessis as he walked on for his fight against Nigerian-New Zealander Israel Adesanya. “We are excited. I think probably 80% of the squad is going to the fight,” Etzebeth told the media on Saturday after their win against Australia. “We laid the foundation for him tonight. He watched the game, and he had a bet with one of the Australian fighters as well, so he got his money.” #ufc #dricusduplessis #israeladesanya #southafrica #siyakolisi #ebenetzebeth #springboks ? original sound – News24
Du Plessis (22-2) has now won 10 fights in a row, having originally claimed the belt after beating American Sean Strickland in January.
“I came in here to die for this belt,” Du Plessis said. “I came here to take it home. Here I am, still the champion.”
At a sold-out 15 000 arena, Adesanya (24-4) enjoyed significant crowd support and apeared to have an edge for much of the fight until he was helpless against Du Plessis’ rear-naked choke.
“I’m disappointed, but at the same time I’m proud because this is the best I’ve felt and looked,” said the Nigeria-born New Zealander, who made his return after a shock defeat to Strickland in September last year.
“I just had the better man on the night and I’ll give him respect for that.”
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