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Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff Writer
UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland warned Dricus Du Plessis not to cross the line ahead of their title bout this week in Toronto, saying that referencing the childhood trauma Strickland has previously discussed “transcends fighting.”
Strickland (28-5) is scheduled to defend his title against Du Plessis (20-2) in the main event of UFC 297 on Saturday inside Scotiabank Arena. The buildup to the fight took an ugly turn last month when Du Plessis took a swipe at Strickland by referencing his father, whom Strickland says physically abused him as a child.
Speaking on his podcast, “The Man Dance,” Strickland made it clear he would not tolerate Du Plessis broaching that subject again this week.
“I actually sent him a message and I was like, ‘Listen, Dricus. We’re going to go try and murder each other, but if you bring that s— up again, I will f—ing stab you,” Strickland said. “Press conference, weigh-in. He was cool about it, he was cool about it. But again, I’m not telling you I don’t want to fight you, Dricus. I’m not saying you’re not a good fighter. I’m just saying that that’s a line that, when crossed, transcends fighting.
“If I go to Canada and you bring that up, well, guess what? I’m going to jail, they’re going to deport me and we spend eight weeks of training for no f—ing reason.”
The two middleweights were involved in a public scuffle inside T-Mobile Arena at UFC 296 in Las Vegas last month. Strickland attacked Du Plessis while the two were sitting in close proximity to the Octagon. The scuffle occurred during the same week of Du Plessis’ comments. No criminal charges emerged from the incident.
Du Plessis, of South Africa, has remained unapologetic about his comment. He has pointed to Strickland’s well-documented history of saying outlandish things to his opponents as well as to other UFC fighters he hasn’t even fought.
The UFC has a news conference scheduled for Thursday that Strickland and Du Plessis are both set to attend. The two will likely square off for the media after that news conference and again at a ceremonial weigh-in Friday. The UFC has its own security team in position during fight week in addition to whatever local authorities include.
Strickland, 32, will be seeking his first title defense. He upset Israel Adesanya to win the 185-pound championship in September.