Las Vegas, NV – UFC middleweight Dricus Du Plessis may be on the verge of his first title shot in the promotion, but standing in his way is former champion Robert Whittaker who is looking to get back to the title picture himself at UFC 290 on Saturday night.
“If I’m physically capable, if there is no problem for me to start my fight camp and be ready for that title fight, no problem at all. I’ll be ready,” Du Plessis told reporters including Cageside Press on Wednesday.
Du Plessis (19-2) says he’ll be ready for a quick turnaround for UFC 293 in Sydney to take on champion Israel Adesanya should he earn the title shot with a win over Whittaker. It’s not his focus at the moment, but he says he would take it if he gets out of this fight healthy, and with the win.
“This is my third fight in seven months so I’ve been turning around and getting these fights in to climb this ladder,” he said.
“But not even considering that when I get into the cage with Robert Whittaker. I’m willing to take a limb off, and this be the last fight of my life to beat Robert Whittaker with that piece of limb. I’m not even thinking about this title fight right now. I’m thinking about Robert Whittaker, and I guess they’ll decide if I’m number one contender or not.”
Even with a win at UFC 290 it is possible that Adesanya faces someone else for the belt before Du Plessis is able to challenge him in Sydney. Du Plessis doesn’t mind waiting for his shot, but it doesn’t have to be against Adesanya. Sean Strickland has been mentioned as a possible challenger for the middleweight title.
“I don’t want to fight Izzy. I want to fight the guy with the belt. So whether it’s Izzy, whether it’s Strickland, I don’t care,” he said.
“For me it’s about fighting whoever has that title to become the champion.”
Watch the entire media day scrum with Dricus Du Plessis above. He takes on Robert Whittaker at UFC 290 on Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena.
