Dricus’ next fight in South Africa is easier said than done — here’s why

The big question now is, will Dricus du Plessis’ next title defence be in South Africa, in front of his own fans?

Du Plessis retained his Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight belt on Sunday after a submission victory against big rival Israel Adesanya in Perth.

Who he will next fight is also up in the air, with a number of contenders lined up.

But, the question the fans across South Africa want answered, is will Du Plessis get a chance to fight in his own country?

After winning the title with a points decision against Sean Strickland in Toronto in January, the talk was that Du Plessis’ next fight would be in his homeland, but it never happened, with his first defence taking place in Australia, against Adesanya, at the weekend.

Coming to Africa

Last week, UFC president Dana White said that if Du Plessis retained his title, the country would be hosting his next title defense.

But this appears easier said than done.

At Sunday’s press conference UFC Senior Vice President David Shaw outlined the challenges of hosting a UFC pay-per-view event.

“The Dricus situation is tough. When we come to continental Africa we want to make a good first impression, so do we want to do an event in the middle of the night?” he said referring to the extreme time difference between South Africa and the United States.

“Also, what are the financial considerations of taking a pay-per-view to such a country? What does the gate look like compared to an alternative venue?” Shaw explained.

Options

The UFC prefers to host the higher profile events at indoor arenas and unfortunately South Africa’s biggest such venue is Sun Arena at Times Square in Pretoria and, with a capacity of 10,000, it is simply not big enough to host a UFC event.

A stadium event in South Africa – either Cape Town Stadium or FNB Stadium – could also pose a problem with Shaw saying that the UFC only consider stadiums that have a roof.

The reason for this being the unpredictability of the weather with a rained-out event resulting in a loss of millions of dollars.

“What is clear is that if Dana (White, UFC president) wants to do an event for the fans, for the growth of the sport, despite challenges, he is going to make that decision,” said Shaw.
“So the short answer is, this is definitely a 2025 thing, we do not want to wait much longer.”