Aussie UFC champ Robert Whittaker suffers shock loss to South African sensation Dricus du Plessis before next opponent Israel Adesayna confronts him with foul-mouthed racist tirade
- Springbok made it eight wins in a row
- His devastating power incensed current world champ
- Their title match will be in Australia
Rising South African middleweight star Dricus du Plessis earned a shot at defending champion Israel Adesanya with a stunning second round knockdown of Aussie Robert Whittaker at UFC 290.
Whittaker was flagging toward the end of the first round but seemed composed and back to normal by the time the second started.
However, a du Plessis right delivered with such force as to completely shake Whittaker’s soul, opened the door for his stunning next 30 seconds.
He saw that ex-world champion, known as The Reaper, was hurt, struggling and back-pedaling, so he pursued him around the ring; throwing out lefts and rights which sent him to his knees.
It was then as Whittaker tried to cover up that he pouncedm unleashing a non-stop barrage until the ref jumped in to protect the stricken and beaten Australian.
A right hand did the damage and the former champ Robert Whittaker just did not recover allowing Dricus du Plessis to continue hammering him
When on the canvas South Africa’s du Plessis was relentless as he crashed blows into the stricken Aussie
Du Plessis is a powerhouse in the middleweight division and handed Whittaker a rare KO loss in this Las Vegas clash.
Prior to the fight Whittaker boasted a 14 – 2 MMA record, so it was a shock loss for the Aussie star.
And Du Plessis showed his enormous respect for the Aussie after the fight.
‘This is truly the biggest honor of my whole fighting career being able to share the cage with a legend like Robert,’ du Plessis said during the start of his post-fight interview with UFC commentator Joe Rogan.
‘A guy whose poster I had in my room, wishing to be like someday.
‘Robert, I don’t know where he is but he’s a gentleman, a humble man and truly a legend of this sport.’
But no sooner had du Plessis felt the rush of pride and ecstasy from his win, in jumped current champion, and his next opponent Israel Adesanya, who launched into a racist and foul-mouted tirade.
Du Plessis himself may have contributed to it when Rogan introduced them in mid-ring by saying, ‘here’s the great UFC middleweight.’
The South African cheekily quipped, ‘I don’t know about great,’ and it was then the champ exploded.
The joy of victory for Dricus du Plessis was sweet as he earned a shot for a world title in Sydney in September
Current middleweight champion Izzy Adesanya in black t-shirt confronts the impressive Dricus du Plessis who had just smashed Aussie Robert Whittaker into submission post-fight
He unleashed a tsunami of expletive-driven claims primarily to do with African heritage.
Adesanya saw red and they butted heads, before the champ said: ‘This is my African brother right here. Let’s go n****r, what’s up b***h?
‘Let’s go n****r. Yeah n****r. What’s up n****r. What the f*** you gonna do n****r?’
Du Plessis hit back: ‘Get this s**t out!’
Adesanya was undeterred, saying: ‘Yeah my African brother, yeah my African brother. What’s up n****r, yeah n****r’.
Du Plessis said: ‘I’m African but I ain’t no brother of yours.’
‘You my n****r for real,’ Adesanya said antagonizingly, before continuing his race-themed tirade.
When it had died down and Adesanya left the ring, Rogan with mike in hand said the obvious.
‘This guy (du Plessis) is a tank.’
‘He is a really dangerous guy. To do that against a guy like Whittaker is a real wake-up call for the rest of the division.’
The Whittaker loss kept the Australian curse going with Jimmy Crute and Shannon Ross also losing earlier on the card.
Adesanya will face du Plessis for the world title in Sydney on September 10 at UFC 293.
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