OPINION: Dricus pulls a sneaky move, returning home without fanfare

Imagine the Springboks, the Proteas, Bafana Bafana, or our Olympians, winning a world title, and after this momentous occasion they arrive back in South Africa without telling anyone.

Our very own Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweight title holder Dricus du Plessis did just that.

Du Plessis became one of the jewels in this country when he won his belt for the first time in January last year — beating American Sean Strickland via a split decision in Toronto.

Did Dricus want to avoid the media?

On that occasion, he returned to South Africa and was greeted by thousands of fans at the airport, and even paraded his coveted belt around the country in the weeks that followed.

After his first successful defence — against Israel Adesanya in Perth in August — DDP’s return was a low key one, and due to the fact he was feeling under the weather, he answered a few questions and went on his way.

A few weeks ago he successfully defended his crown for the second time when he beat Strickland again, this time via a unanimous decision at UFC312 in Sydney.

It was understood that he would return back to South Africa sometime this week, but instead he returned early, much to the surprise of many.

One can only assume that DDP was trying to avoid questions over a shirt he wore during a media day in Sydney prior to the fight.

‘Trump prefers champions’

Du Plessis sported a t-shirt with the phrase ‘Trump prefers champions’, something that didn’t sit well with a number of his fans.

He did later say that he only wore the shirt to get under the skin of Strickland – something that clearly worked – but at what cost?

The fickle world of social media climbed into DDP almost immediately after the incident.

One has to feel for the champion, who on more than one occasion has made it very clear of his love for South Africa and the people who live in it.

But as a fan of mixed martial arts and of Du Plessis I feel he did the country an injustice by not flaunting the belt again.

Hopefully, once the dust has settled, he will share his triumph, again, with a country that also prefers champions.