Dricus Du Plessis really doesn’t want to fight Sean Strickland. ‘Tarzan’, of course, has officially been confirmed as the reigning middleweight champ’s next opponent to run back their incredibly close UFC 297 clash where Strickland dropped the title to the South African via a razor-thin split decision.

But, with Khazmat Chimaev destroying Robert Whittaker in their UFC 308 clash in October, many, including Du Plessis, want ‘Borz’ to be next. After all, their matchup seems much more exciting and promises to be more action-packed than the high-level striking chess match that was Strickland-Du Plessis 1. But it seems the middleweight champ has come around to the Strickland rematch, even if he still has reservations about it. Or so ‘DDP’s latest tweet on the matter makes it seem that way.

“Just for clarification. I preferred the Khamzat fight but the rematch is a fight most wanted before Khamzat vs Withaker. I’m not unhappy with the UFC’s decision like I said I’ll fight the man fans think is the next best guy he was promised the fight so Strickland it is,” Du Plessis wrote.

Of course, the final decision on who fights whom ultimately rests with the UFC. But champions do get a say in who their opponent is, and the UFC considers their wishes. But that doesn’t seem to be the case in Du Plessis’ case at all. After all, the South African has been consistent over the past many months in not wanting to rematch Strickland.

Before the UFC 308 Whittaker-Chimaev clash, in fact, ‘DDP’ had said that the only thing in Strickland’s favor was that he went to a decision with him. Otherwise, he felt, Whittaker or Chimaev had a much better claim to a title shot. This raises the question- why is the UFC so insistent on having Strickland face Du Plessis next?

Dana White feels Sean Strickland was wronged in the first Dricus Du Plessis clash

Of course, it seems from the tweet that Du Plessis was almost forced into fighting Strickland by the UFC. After all, the champ explicitly mentioned that it was ‘the UFC’s decision’ to have him rematch the American. And it is quite easy to see why. Dana White, after all, had said in the post-UFC 297 presser that he felt Strickland should have won the decision.

“I had it two to two going into the last round and I thought Strickland won the last round,” White told the media after UFC 297. Since the UFC always tries to make things right when it feels a fighter has been wronged, it is not surprising they took this decision. But what about Chimaev? What will he be doing in the meanwhile and when exactly will Strickland-Du Plessis 2 take place?

Well, Du Plessis vs. Strickland 2 is set for UFC 312 in February next year. And Chimaev will probably sit out until mid-2025 and most probably face the winner of that bout. Of course, there is the possibility of ‘Borz’ wanting to remain active and fighting in the meantime, but the chances of that are very low.

Not to mention, no one in the division could have a claim to a #1 title contender bout against Chimaev. This is why it is almost sure that ‘Borz’ will wait and face the winner of Strickland-Du Plessis 2. What do you think about Dricus Du Plessis’ clarification regarding the Sean Strickland rematch?