Dricus Du Plessis Will Move Up To Fight Alex Pereira, Says Coach After UFC 305 Win Over Israel Adesanya
After Alex Pereira challenged Dricus du Plessis, coach Morne Visser suggested Stillknocks would move up to light heavyweight division.
![Alex Pereira(left) and Dricus du Plessis(right) Image Courtesy: Getty Images/Dricus du Plessis' Instagram](https://www.pinkvilla.com/images/2024-08/1430694767_untitled-design-2.jpg)
UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis’ head coach Morne Visser believes Stillknocks would move up to the light heavyweight division to take on Alex Pereira. After Poatan expressed his interest in going down to middleweight to challenge the current champion, the respective camp had thoughts on the matter.
Pereira claimed he would move down to middleweight to challenge Dricus du Plessis. Rather than Poatan coming down, coach Morne Visser appears stern on Stillknocks moving up instead. In an interview with Submission Radio, the champion’s coach had this to say.
“No, I won’t give him the joy to go down to 185. We’ll just go up,” said Morne Visser. According to him, he believes Alex Pereira would potentially use weight cutting as an excuse after losing to Dricus du Plessis. So, he believes the UFC will allow Stillknocks to move up to light heavyweight division to take on the champion.
“I don’t wanna beat him, and then he said, he’ll say that we’ve gone down, or he had to go down and he was fatigued,” said coach Morne Visser. He believes Dricus du Plessis would be ready to move up to light heavyweight and challenge the champion of the division.
Morne Visser claims he will not wait for Alex Pereira to reduce to middleweight, and would rather prefer if Dricus du Plessis put on a few pounds. The South African champ’s coach also gave a potential date for the hypothetical fight to take place.
“He’s fighting in October. So, I really hope the UFC gives us this blessing for December,” said Morne Visser. A potential fight between the two champions would be one of the biggest fights the UFC has ever produced.
After his dominant victory over Israel Adesanya, Dricus du Plessis addressed his thoughts on Alex Pereira calling him out. Stillknocks compared his UFC 305 win over his loss to The Last Stylebender at UFC 287. The South African champion believes he can dominate Poatan in a hypothetical five round fight if it takes place.
“If Izzy stiffens you like that, you do not want to be there with me. Especially not, when you’re gonna come in there with excuses, ‘no I cut too much weight’ that’s gonna happen,” said Dricus Du Plessis after Alex Pereira called him out.
UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira is scheduled to fight Khalil Rountree at UFC 307. After Dana White’s announcement, fans expressed Magomed Ankalaev as a potential opponent for the title shot, rather than The War Horse. However, the Russian fighter claimed he would work his way up eventually, and asked fans not to feel sorry for him.
Alex Pereira being one of the biggest stars in the UFC, has multiple fighters calling him out. However, with the potential Dricus du Plessis fight, fans anticipate fireworks. The organization has not announced their plans for Poatan in regards to shifting divisions. The MMA community wants answers on what his next move would be following his dominance in the light heavyweight division.
Do you believe Alex Pereira will fight Dricus du Plessis?
Also read: Magomed Ankalaev Lashes Out at Alex Pereira Following His Middleweight Desires: 'Biggest Chicken…'
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