Dricus du Plessis accuses Kamaru Usman of avoiding UFC Oklahoma City fight: ‘He didn’t want to sign the contract’

Dricus du Plessis will face Kamaru Usman in a middleweight main event at UFC Oklahoma City on July 18, though du Plessis has revealed the bout nearly didn't happen. According to the South African fighter, Usman was reluctant to sign the contract, and it took direct intervention from the UFC to convince him to accept the matchup.

"He didn't want to sign the contract, I know that for a fact," du Plessis stated. "I spoke to the UFC and they said, 'We finally convinced him to sign.' If you need convincing to sign, that's a problem." Despite Usman's apparent hesitation, du Plessis welcomed the challenge, understanding why a fighter of Usman's caliber might be cautious about facing him at middleweight.

Usman, 39, is widely regarded as one of the greatest welterweights in UFC history, having won his first 15 octagon fights and capturing the welterweight title in 2019 with five successful defenses. His sole middleweight appearance resulted in a narrow decision loss to Khamzat Chimaev. Du Plessis sees this matchup as the ideal test to rehabilitate his career after losing his middleweight belt to Chimaev at UFC 319 and spending nearly a year sidelined with injury.

Du Plessis emphasized that fighting Usman—a grappler with wrestling credentials—addresses questions about his submission defense that emerged from his loss to Chimaev. "What's it going to mean for me to go out there and beat another striker?" du Plessis asked. "I want to go out there and prove" his improved well-roundedness in grappling and wrestling. He noted that his previous wins over strikers like Sean Strickland, twice, and Israel Adesanya demonstrated his striking prowess. Usman's wrestling background and victories over top middleweight competition like Strickland and his competitive bout with Chimaev make him an ideal opponent for du Plessis to prove he has addressed his wrestling vulnerabilities and remains a complete fighter ready for another title run.