In the main event of UFC 312 tomorrow night the middleweight title is on the line in a rematch. Champion Dricus Du Plessis (22-2) will look to successfully defend his title for the second time as he faces off against the man he defeated to become middleweight champion, Sean Strickland (29-6).
These two first fought in January of 2024 with the middleweight title on the line. These two had a razor close first fight with Dricus Du Plessis winning by split decision. To tell you how close it was, out of the 23 media members who scored the fight, 11 scored the fight for Strickland while 12 scored the fight for DDP. Dana White also expressed that he thought Strickland won the fight.
Nevertheless, DDP won and became middleweight champion. Following his title win, Du Plessis faced Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 and submitted him in the fourth round to retain his title. Strickland fought Paulo Costa last June and won a lopsided decision. Now, they’ll try to settle the score tomorrow night.
UFC 312 Prediction
These two fight in very different ways. For DDP, he fights with aggression and he’s always putting his foot on the gas. With his style, he can be a little wild and his technique isn’t great at times. However, he’s tough as hell and he usually wears his opponents down on his way to winning.
Sean Strickland relies on his precise striking and high-volume output. Strickland is constantly throwing straight shots and while they might not always be the most powerful, he can annoy the hell out of any fighter he’s facing because you’re always dealing with a jab in your face or a teep kick up the middle.
So, who wins at UFC 312? I’ve gone back-and-forth on this one. I do believe that Strickland is going to land the cleaner shots throughout the fight just like he did in the first matchup. The big question is going to be whether or not his volume will be high enough to outweigh the volume and grappling attacks of DDP.
I’m curious to see Strickland’s cardio over the course of five rounds especially with his rumored staff infection. I think we are in for another really close title fight but in the end, I think DDP gets it done. While Strickland is going to have a lot of success, the big moments at UFC 312 which I think will persuade the judges will belong to Dricus Du Plessis.
Prediction: Dricus Du Plessis by Decision