Outside Source
Dricus Du Plessis is motivated following his UFC 319 defeat. | Getty/UFC
While Dricus Du Plessis spoke in the Octagon immediately following his loss to Khamzat Chimaev in the UFC 319 headliner, the South African has been relatively quiet since then.
That changed on Monday, when the former middleweight champion released a statement via Instagram reacting to his defeat. Du Plessis was dominated by Chimaev for the majority of their five-round fight at the United Center in Chicago on Aug. 16, as he struggled with his adversary’s takedowns and positional control. In his statement, “Stillknocks” offered no excuses and praised his opponent, but he also vowed to make a “return to glory.”
Advertisement
“It’s been just over a week and I have spent some time with my family and friends, those closest to me who will be with me win or lose,” Du Plessis wrote. “I embrace this loss with open arms, because believe me as much as I hate losing, it’s as much part of life as part of our game — and I believe it’s necessary in my pursuit of greatness. ‘Without the bitter, the sweet wouldn’t be as sweet.’”
“Make no mistake I’m not a good loser, because a good loser becomes a frequent one. I am however — an avid learner of the arts and of life itself. This loss has exploded a desire in me that will have the consequence of an onslaught bigger than the original domination — my return to glory and pursuit of greatness will be unimaginable for the average minded.”
Du Plessis Sends Message to ‘Those Who Enjoyed to See Me Fall’
“I have absolutely no excuses for my performance, I was beaten by a better fighter on the night, congratulations to my opponent and thank you for the honor of sharing the Octagon with you,” he continued. “Thank you for all the love and support from fans all over the world, and my sponsors that has always and will in the future play a critical role in my success AND SINCERELY thank you to all those who enjoyed to see me fall, because I will return the favor, like I always have.”
Du Plessis entered UFC 319 on an 11-bout professional winning streak. He claimed middleweight gold with a split-decision triumph against Sean Strickland at UFC 297 and authored successful title defenses against Adesanya and against Strickland in a rematch. Du Plessis also owns notable victories over the likes of Robert Whittaker, Derek Brunson, Darren Till and Brad Tavares in UFC competition.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
Help support MMACrazies.com when you shop Amazon by starting your online Amazon shopping at MMACrazies.com/recommends/amazon. You are not charged extra, but we receive a small and very helpful commission on everything you purchase. Thanks for thinking of us every time you shop at Amazon.
