Du Plessis routs Usman in battle of ex-UFC champs

Dricus Du Plessis returned to the winner’s circle with a dominant unanimous decision over Kamaru Usman on Saturday night, controlling a five-round UFC Fight Night main event at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City. The former middleweight champion used power, striking volume and sustained pressure to keep Usman under threat for nearly the entire contest. Du Plessis rocked Usman several times, mixed jabs and leg kicks with punishing knees and head kicks, and did not allow the former longtime welterweight champion to build enough momentum to change the direction of the fight.

The judges scored the bout 50-45, 49-46 and 49-46, all for Du Plessis. It was a decisive result in a meeting between former champions, and it marked Du Plessis’ first appearance since he lost his middleweight crown to Khamzat Chimaev in a five-round decision in August 2025. Du Plessis entered that bout having begun his UFC career 9-0, a run that included two title defenses. Against Usman, he immediately looked intent on showing that his place near the top of the middleweight division remained intact. Afterward, Du Plessis thanked Usman and told the crowd he wanted his belt back.

Du Plessis set the pace from the opening round

Du Plessis found his range early and dictated the action through most of the fight. In the first round, he connected with a series of jabs and leg kicks before landing a hard right hand on Usman’s temple that briefly wobbled him. The striking pattern continued in the second round, when Du Plessis timed a big knee to the head as Usman attempted a level change. Another knee up the middle caught Usman squarely on the chin and hurt him again. The pressure was not simply a matter of one heavy shot. Du Plessis repeatedly made Usman work through his output, combining long strikes with attacks that punished entries and limited the opportunities for a sustained response.

Usman did have his best stretch in the third round. He scored his first takedown with about a minute remaining, but Du Plessis got back to his feet and Usman was unable to do much with the position. Du Plessis took back the momentum in the fourth, landing a pair of powerful head kicks and regularly finding two-punch combinations. When Usman shot for another takedown, Du Plessis easily stuffed it. The sequence reinforced the shape of the fight: Usman was searching for a route to alter the pace, while Du Plessis kept returning to effective strikes and denying extended control.

Usman rallies late, while Du Plessis calls for a trilogy

Likely needing a finish in the final round, Usman absorbed a huge head kick that badly hurt him and sent him back against the cage. He recovered and began to press forward with strikes as Du Plessis’ output started to wane. Usman threw big haymakers in the final seconds, but the late push was not enough to overcome the earlier rounds. After the decision, Usman questioned the 50-45 score while also acknowledging the challenge posed by Du Plessis. Du Plessis, listed No. 2 in the division, said he believed a performance of that kind should earn him a title shot. He also called for a trilogy with current champion Sean Strickland, against whom Du Plessis has two wins.

• Du Plessis established control with jabs, leg kicks and a hard right hand that briefly wobbled Usman in the opening round.
• Du Plessis landed knees in the second round, regained momentum with head kicks and combinations in the fourth, and survived Usman’s final-round rally.

The result gave Du Plessis a clear victory in his first fight since losing the middleweight title, while Usman left his second bout at 185 pounds on the wrong side of a one-sided decision. Du Plessis’ performance was built on repeated pressure rather than a single finish: he hurt Usman with punches, knees and kicks, defended a key later takedown attempt, and stayed ahead even when Usman surged forward at the end. His postfight message was direct. Du Plessis said he was back in the winner’s circle and wants a path back to the belt.