One of Pretoria’s most exciting emerging sports superstars, Dricus du Plessis, once again managed to bring the spotlight of the Mixed Martial Arts community on him this past weekend with a brilliant performance at the much-discussed UFC 264 tournament in Las Vegas, USA.

After dominating his weight division in South Africa for years under the banner of the local Extreme Fighting Championship (EFC) – which also has ties to Europe – Du Plessis first made inroads in Poland to become welterweight champion of that country’s mixed martial arts organisation, before he moved to the biggest stage when he was recruited by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) of America, the world’s largest and most prestigious Mixed Martial Arts organization.

In October last year, he announced his entry into this big stage with great fanfare, when he knocked out Markus Perez of Brazil in the first round of their fight at the UFC Fight Night tournament in Abu Dhabi.

On Saturday night in Las Vegas, Du Plessis’ big chance came when he was part of the tournament that was watched by millions of TV viewers worldwide, due to the main fight between the flamboyant Irishman, Conor McGregor, and the American, Dustin Poirier.

This third fight in a trilogy between the two high-profile MMA fighters attracted huge media attention around the world, after McGregor won the first fight with a technical knockout, while Poirier again dominated the second fight, when he knocked out the Irishman.

Saturday’s third fight ended in an anti-climax, after McGregor broke his leg at the end of the first round and Poirier – who dominated his opponent in that first round – was named the winner.

Du Plessis’ fight against Giles progressed to the second round, after the South African by all indications won the first round on points.

The Pretoria fighter, who is also a master at the various submission techniques of the sport, showed in the first round why his opponents do not like to face him on the ground and Giles had to use every trick in the book to stay out of trouble during those first five minutes.

However, after the American attacked furiously in the second round, Du Plessis waited for his chance and then sent his opponent to the canvas with a magnificent straight-right on the jaw. Although Du Plessis was then ready to attack further, the American was already in dreamland and the referee ended the fight.

Du Plessis is fast becoming a popular star in the UFC community and his dream of a UFC world title may soon come true if he continues to build on this trend.

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