Former UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis has provided an update on a rumored fight against MMA legend Kamaru Usman.
Du Plessis and Usman are reportedly set to clash in the main event of UFC Oklahoma City, which takes place on July 18 at Paycom Center. But for whatever reason, this fight still hasn’t been announced yet, even though the card is less than six weeks away.
Now, we have an update from one of the fighters himself, as du Plessis took to his social media on Tuesday to provide the fans with the latest intel on this proposed fight.
DDP Provides Update on Kamaru Usman UFC OKC Fight
Taking to his social media, du Plessis confirmed to his fans that he signed the contract to fight Usman a while ago. However, he is accusing Usman of not signing the contract on his end, which has prevented this fight from being made official yet.
“So apparently a little someone agreed to a fight but actually signing the dotted line isn’t that easy when you know you’re just signing for a show purse. Smart-Yes Scared- Definitely Sorry people the announcement is taking longer than expected but from my side it’s been signed and sealed for a while. #stillknocks #preparetobeamazed,” du Plessis wrote on his Instagram.
Betting Odds for Dricus du Plessis vs. Kamaru Usman
Even though du Plessis vs. Usman has not yet been officially announced by the UFC, sportsbooks have recently released betting odds for the fight.
Right now, du Plessis is a -350 favorite, while Usman is a +285 underdog.
For du Plessis, he is looking to get back into the win column after losing a wide decision to former UFC middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev last August at UFC 319, a fight where he lost his middleweight strap.
It was a poor performance by du Plessis, to be sure, but we can’t forget that he had won nine straight fights in the UFC before that, including two wins over Sean Strickland, the current UFC middleweight champion.
As of this time of writing, du Plessis is the No. 2-ranked middleweight in the UFC and the No. 13-ranked pound-for-pound fighter on the roster.
As for Usman, the longtime UFC welterweight champion has not fought since UFC Atlanta last June, when he pulled off an upset over Joaquin Buckley.
While Usman is ranked at No. 9 overall in the UFC welterweight rankings, he is moving up to middleweight now, which is certainly an interesting decision at this stage of his career.
It is worth noting that Usman holds a previous win over Strickland, the current UFC middleweight champ, from their welterweight days. So if he can go in there and beat du Plessis, it could potentially set him up for a rematch with the champ.
Hopefully, this fight between du Plessis and Usman gets booked soon, because it’s a very intriguing matchup on paper, and one that is crucial for the title picture at 185 lbs. Du Plessis has said he’s signed the contract, and now all that’s left is for Usman to.
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