“He’s a big guy, always coming forward. That’s where you’ve got to stop him. I’ve seen him struggle on the back foot,” said Morne Visser, head coach of Dricus Du Plessis, speaking on Submission Radio, mocking Alex Pereira’s technique after the Brazilian hinted at returning to middleweight following his dominant win over Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC 307. Pereira then called ‘Stillknocks’ a “scared clown” in an interview with Full Send MMA while attending the UFC 306 event, sparking major tension. This comment caught the 185lbs champ’s attention, and all of a sudden, a rivalry erupted.

Du Plessis wasn’t about to let the disrespectful comment slide. He fired back on X, saying, “A scared clown – how dare you! Now that’s taking it too far. I’ve already said I’m in to fight either you or Sean Strickland. What more do you want, or should I tag your translator?” But that wasn’t the end. ‘Stillknocks’ seized the moment, calling out Pereira with an Achilles movie quote, after dominating Strickland at UFC 312, setting up a potential double championship shot.

A month later, Alex Pereira’s hype train came to a halt, courtesy of Magomed Ankalaev, who executed a calculated, forward-pressing strategy at UFC 313. While ‘Poatan’ fans were left heartbroken, Du Plessis was a little upset by the loss of his double-champ shot. He sarcastically posted on X, “Thanks, Ankalaev, for taking the biggest payday of my life. Aura gone!” The 185lbs kingpin hasn’t been fond of Pereira, but his coach didn’t hold back, offering a brutally honest take on the former two-division champ’s lackluster performance.

Morne Visser told Submission radio, “Looked how bad he looked in his last fight. It didn’t go his way. Ankalaev just outplayed him. I speak to a lot of people, they say, ‘It was a boring fight.’ I said it was a brilliant fight. The game plan of Ankalaev and his team was just absolutely superb, and the way they handled it and stuck to the game plan, never rushed anything. And that was the only thing that Pereira does; he waits for you to make a mistake or waits for you to get in or come in, and then he hooks you. And that stupid low-low of his. What else can you do? He’s s–t in the clinch, he’s s–t on the floor, he’s s–t in grappling.”

He added, “And we’ve also seen Ankalaev doing a pretty good job of outboxing him on the feet and kickboxing him. So, well done to Ankalaev, and the hate always comes from jealousy. Dricus always laughed about it because we just wanted to fight that big of a name; that’s the only reason why we want to fight him. No hatred, no jealousy, nothing to be jealous about.”

Alex Pereira vs. Dricus Du Plessis would’ve been a fascinating matchup. Visser’s point about Ankalaev looking great on the feet is spot on, but let’s not forget Pereira’s resilience. He successfully defended 12 takedown attempts in his career, showing that he’s more than just a striker. After all, ‘Poatan’ has been a striker his whole life, so developing solid takedown defense takes serious dedication. It’s hard to say what would’ve happened if the two had faced off, but it certainly would’ve been a fight to remember.

The current middleweight champ is one of those fighters who always finds a way to win, no matter how unorthodox his approach might be. He’s built a name for himself as a tank, just steamrolling through his opponents. It’s no surprise that Du Plessis has earned a loyal following, and even some of his rivals can’t help but respect his style.

Israel Adesanya praises Dricus Du Plessis for his fighting style

Dricus Du Plessis’ fighting style is like Brock Samson from The Venture Bros — it’s not polished, but it’s all about pure violence! He relentlessly moves forward, always hunting with that right hand, and it lands almost every time. Take his fight with Israel Adesanya — ‘Stillknocks’ managed to land some looping rights against one of the most technical fighters around. Then, he somehow dismantled Sean Strickland using elbows and a body kick. Where do you see that kind of combination? Adesanya has always respected Du Plessis, but this time, he called him s–t in a good way, of course.

Adesanya on the Pound 4 Pound podcast with Henry Cejudo and Kamaru Usman said, “He’s stubborn, man. It’s even funny to watch. I give him all the respect. He’s so good at what he does, no matter what. What did I say before? That he’s the best sh-t fighter in the world, but he somehow makes it look good.”

The former two-time middleweight champ is spot on here. Du Plessis is one of those fighters who’s just weird in all the right ways, and that’s what makes any fight against him such a wild ride. Even a potential match with Pereira would have been an absolute spectacle. So, how do you think that fight would’ve gone? Please let us know by commenting below.