He is in the fighting business, but Mixed Martial Arts challenger Dricus Du Plessis appears to be down to earth and very calm.
It took us almost six months to pin down the fighter for an interview ahead of the UFC 297 headliner in Toronto, Canada, in January 2024.
Meeting Dricus was a dream come true for any sportscaster and I was humbled by his calm, reassuring demeanor.
He wanted to meet all the BGTN team members who had come with us to meet the fighter.
In between rounds there’s a feeling that only the man in the arena will ever know.
Mine is “I am the greatest fighter in the world, watch this.” pic.twitter.com/U4dIRMphAH
— Dricus Du Plessis (@dricusduplessis) December 28, 2023We were at the CIT Performance Institute in the South African capital, Pretoria, to talk to him about his fight against American Sean Strickland for the middleweight championship.
For me, it felt like the day I met former President Nelson Mandela – he came across as someone who cared about the country and its people. Dricus was the same.
The first thing that Dricus said when we met him was ‘Hulle weet nie, wat ons weet nie’ (They don’t know what we know).
This is an iconic phrase that galvanized the Springboks on their way to retaining the Rugby World Cup in France in 2023.
In contrast, his opponent Sean Strickland has been clouded in controversy – attacking Dricus at a media conference in Las Vegas almost a month before their fight.
We asked Dricus to comment on his opponent and he didn’t pull his punches.
Hello @ufc! 🇿🇦 pic.twitter.com/B71HyrR54V
— Dricus Du Plessis (@dricusduplessis) October 11, 2020He told BGTN that in the ring, Strickland is a fighter, but outside he is a clown, thriving on controversy.
Turning to his own career, Dricus explains that despite being a three-times EFC World Champion, he faced rejection time and time again, saying he was simply considered to be not good enough to fight in the UFC.
But he says that sometimes, one needs to go through tough times in life to learn – with the aim of believing in yourself.
Dealing with rejection was a sad and touching subject for Dricus.
Another topic close to his heart is the subject of farm murders in South Africa.
The country has seen many farmers killed over the past three decades with questions about their security and whether the situation will change.
Dricus believes there is an answer to this, saying South Africans must come together and realize that the problem is bigger than electricity outages and a lack of water.
He was passionate about the issue, saying “if we do not address food security and protect our farmers in this country, that will be the day we are going to see a war in South Africa”.
Dricus will be fighting on Sunday, 21 January at 05:00 am GMT at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada.
