Dricus Du Plessis dominates Kamaru Usman at 'absolutely electric' UFC Fight Night 281

Dricus Du Plessis was coming off a loss, but the UFC fighter’s confidence was still soaring as he prepared for Saturday night’s bout against Kamaru Usman in Oklahoma City.

>Du Plessis lost his middleweight championship belt to Khamzat Chimaev last August.

>As the 32-year-old Du Plessis got ready against the 39-year-old Usman, there was no doubt to him about what the result would be.

>“There’s not a world that I would have lost tonight,” Du Plessis said.

>Du Plessis had a good feeling heading into Saturday's middleweight battle and proceeded to put on a show as he defeated Usman by unanimous decision (50-45, 49-46, 49-46) at Paycom Center in the main event of UFC Fight Night 281.

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>In a fight that included lots of striking and little grappling, it seemed as if Du Plessis would finish Usman early following a dominant second round.

>But Usman — one of the greatest welterweights in UFC history — is nicknamed the Nigerian Nightmare for a reason.

>He gets after it no matter what and gave the fans a great fight to see as OKC hosted the UFC for the first time in nearly 10 years.

>“That man fought like somebody on the way up, not on the way out,” Du Plessis said. “And I will respect that forever. Always put respect on that man’s name because he deserves it.”

>Du Plessis headed into the later rounds knowing he was ahead.

>Du Plessis — the only South African who has won a UFC championship — thought it was possible he’d wear down Usman even further and easily cruise.

>It didn’t play out that way, though.

>“Round 4 and 5 came, and the Usman aura came out,” Du Plessis said. “That’s where I live is in those dark spaces, but when I came out in the fourth round, usually that’s where I see people — even with (Israel) Adesanya — that’s usually where I see people (wear down). They don’t want to give up, but subconsciously they already have. I can see it.”

>Du Plessis landed 139 strikes, while Usman had 99.

>Usman, a former Division II national champion wrestler at Nebraska-Kearney, is known as an excellent grappler, but this fight stayed away from the ground.

>And the combination of Du Plessis’ great striking and defense resulted in a frustrating night overall for Usman.

>“It’s tough,” Usman said. “It’s hard to be on this side of it. And I’m not used to being on this side, so it’s a tough one.”

>For Du Plessis, the victory itself wasn’t the only special thing about Saturday.

>He got a lot of cheers and fan support from the 17,173 in attendance, which was a pleasant surprise.

>Paycom Center was packed, and Du Plessis fed off the energy.

>“The atmosphere was absolutely electric,” he said.

>Du Plessis had a great time in OKC leading up to the fight and had fun with it, wearing a black cowboy hat during media day and enjoying the change of scenery.

>“It was weird walking out to hearing cheers,” Du Plessis said. “It was good. It was a good change of pace. I was preparing just for the boos, so thank you, Oklahoma. It’s amazing. I will definitely come back to Oklahoma not just to fight, but (because) I enjoy the place.”

>Nick Sardis covers high school sports for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Nick? He can be reached at nsardis@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @nicksardis. Sign up for The Varsity Club newsletter to access more high school coverage. Support Nick's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.

>This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Dricus Du Plessis dominates Kamaru Usman at 'absolutely electric' UFC Fight Night 281