Top middleweight contender Dricus du Plessis spoke with UFC’s McKenzie Pavacich following his featured main card matchup …
Mackenzie Papa said you’re inside T-Mobile we’re going to joined by driggas duplessy after second round finish of Robert Whittaker how are you feeling absolutely amazing you know uh this whole build up uh with an account down with everything I said I don’t think this fight is seeing the third round I had all the confidence in the world and I truly believed that but you know and you can prepare immensely for it and already see it happening but once it happens it’s just another feeling and it was a massive honor for me to share the cage with a great you know that guy’s going to Hall of Fame no doubt he’s one of the only guys in the pound for pound rank you see who doesn’t have a belt I don’t know how many people they are but he is just one of those guys a fan favorite rightfully so one of those guys I walked out I got booed and he got cheered and I wasn’t even offended by it I just knew that like he deserved it well this is the third fight in a row I feel like I’m saying you’ve taken out a massive name first it was Darren till finished then it was Derek Brunton finished and now you finished Robert whitcker yeah have you put into like perspective how massive that is in regard to your career and the trajectory it’s going up until this point I don’t think even though like I tried to always Manny at first those kind of things like manifest everything all of this was manifested I know like I you know I work on that making sure that I’m mentally physically and emotionally sound when I when I firstly signed fights when in this career you need to because this people are just so good but you know right now that hasn’t sunk in yet that I just finished Robert Whittaker in the way I said I would and you know I’m just going to enjoy tonight for what it is and and give Rob that respect of celebrating uh the warrior that is and the fact that I got to be a warrior martial artist and an incredible human uh he is such a nice guy like you know we’re in a crowd excuse like cheered for Robert again they they boot me a little we got back off to I think it was the wings or the pressure and my brother said oh man that was brutal and I was like yeah well it’s Rob everybody loves your room I love robu what can you do but um you know tonight I’m gonna celebrate him and celebrate a victory over uh the greatest one of the greatest middleweights ever and uh definitely my best performance to date and you know me getting better in in that octo and I’m getting better every time I step in there and you know my life’s work has gone into the sport and to see that um finally playing out the way I wanted to being the number one continue in the world it’s amazing I can’t even explain it well you said that you beat Rob the way that you said you settled so he was just barely off with the first round it came in the second to hear the champion predict you winning first round knockout I won’t say with ease because it’s never easy but what is that mean to you when when the champion has such confidence in you getting the job done absolutely nothing nothing he says means anything to me he he predicted the first round finisher nothing go wrong and I said it at the Press I said oh I said it at the media day now I’ll make sure it happens in the second round because he doesn’t dictate how my career goes I dictate how my career goes and what happened it was the finishing the second round I said he said I manifest the first round finish Rodriguez and I said I will not win in the first round so my manifestation already kicked his ass just before I beat him and that’s exactly what happened I don’t win on these terms I went on my terms and that’s exactly what happened out there tonight obviously a little heated in the Octagon you had said how about we fight in New Zealand but how does Sydney sound in a couple months I didn’t say anything I said South Africa but okay I’m so sorry no I just you just walked you guys no no no um yeah I mean that’s what I said I said where we fight is actually irrelevant to me I have no we could fight in New Zealand in his hometown I don’t care you know for me this is not my home you know you heard the crowd out there tonight they booed me and they cheered were together it wasn’t because they hate me it was because they love him and rightfully so like I said so I’ll go on enemy territory and fight him 100 what we’re going to do now is there’s a lot of lots more people in my Camp the guys that that make sure that I’m ready for this fight my coach when they first said my team and the people we sit and you know we have we have doctors looking after us making sure you know I have a long career ahead of me we have to make sure so I’m feeling great making sure that all the niggles you know at camp for Robert Whittaker you don’t go unscathed you know you don’t go and save and I’m feeling feeling amazing now tomorrow I bet I’ll feel all of that but you know I have no problem in fighting in eight weeks and just one thing is I’m I’m I lose a week of traveling there traveling back because that gives me six weeks already now if there’s anything I need to nurture it doesn’t make sense but and that being said if I get to go ahead of my doctor I can be ready to go immediately you know I’m already fit I’m already ready he’s just got a fight of his life you know you’re only as good as your last performance if you go on that measurement what it what happened in his last performance against Robert Whittaker it was a very close fight what happened in my last performance against with it no I’m not afraid of champion I can’t wait to fight the champion and uh if everyone comes back positive if everything’s is good if physically I’m positive I’m I’m capable like I said I’m fighting a champion in September if not before another day but I mean it’s pretty clear I’m the number one Contender I’ve beaten the guy who’s been at the top of the power for the last decade tonight for the first time anybody has beaten them the champion wherever and whenever that next way happens speak for all of us when I say we can so much thank you