Dricus Du Plessis walked out of Paycom Center on Saturday night with a dominant unanimous decision over Kamaru Usman and one message for every fighter in the UFC middleweight division: he wants his title back, and he has the most airtight argument in the building for why he deserves it.

What Happened at UFC Oklahoma City?

Du Plessis did what he needed to do, cleanly. Two judges scored it 50-45, one went 49-46. He hurt Usman multiple times in rounds one and two, rocked him again in round four, and controlled the pace from first bell to last. Usman, the former five-time welterweight champion making a legitimate run at 185, could not solve the angles Du Plessis throws and could not get his wrestling going consistently enough to shift the fight somewhere comfortable.

“That man has one of the hardest heads I’ve ever hit in my life,” Du Plessis said after. Then came the actual message: “I’m back in the winner’s circle, baby. Let’s get my belt back.”

That line lands differently when you think about who currently holds that belt.

Why Does Du Plessis Deserve the Next Shot at the Middleweight Title?

He has beaten Sean Strickland twice. That is the whole argument and it is bulletproof.

Du Plessis beat Strickland by split decision at UFC 297 in January 2024 to win the middleweight title. He defended the belt twice, including a dominant unanimous decision rematch over Strickland at UFC 312 in Sydney in February 2025. Wide scorecards. No debate on the second one.

Then came Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319 last August. Chimaev’s wrestling and relentless pace were a problem Du Plessis had no answer for that night, and it cost him the title. Then Strickland came in and beat Chimaev at UFC 328 in May to become champion. Which puts Du Plessis at 2-0 against the man currently holding the belt.

There has been noise about a Chimaev rematch with Strickland. Du Plessis had the right response: “Between the two of them, they have an amazing zero title defenses. So, how do you warrant a rematch?” He also called the whole idea “ridiculous” and “senseless” in separate interviews this week. He is right. Chimaev lost and has not defended anything. Strickland won and has not defended anything. Neither of them has the resume that earns an immediate rematch before the guy who beat the current champion twice gets a phone call.

There is also the question of whether Strickland will be available anytime soon. He revealed after UFC 328 that he fought Chimaev through a Grade 1 AC joint separation, a Type 5 SLAP tear, and a partial rotator cuff tear, all sustained four days before the fight. Recovery timelines for that damage run six to ten months. If the UFC does not want to leave the 185-pound division idle through most of 2026, an interim title fight is the move, and Du Plessis is the obvious name to put at the top of it.

Who Is Dricus Du Plessis?

South African, 24-3 after Saturday, nicknamed “Stillknocks” because the finishing instinct is always there regardless of the round. He won the middleweight title by beating Strickland, caught Israel Adesanya with a face crank in the fourth round in a fight most people expected Adesanya to control on the feet, then defended again against Strickland before Chimaev took the title in August 2025. One bad night after eight years of winning is a data point, not a character flaw.

What makes him genuinely hard to prepare for is unpredictable striking combined with a pace that does not drop. Knees from the clinch, uppercuts from weird angles, and when he hurts you he does not panic or rush. Usman had no answer for it on Saturday. Strickland has not found an answer in two fights.

What Happens Next in the UFC Middleweight Division?

If Strickland gets healthy and comes back, Du Plessis deserves the first call. The record makes the case better than any press conference ever could. If Strickland’s shoulder pushes things to early 2027, the interim route makes sense for everyone. Du Plessis vs. Chimaev 2, with an interim belt on the line, is a legitimate main event that answers the rematch question without leaving the division dormant. Chimaev gets his narrative. Du Plessis gets to avenge the loss that cost him everything. Whoever wins walks into a unification fight with full legitimacy.

The middleweight division is not in chaos. It is in a line. Du Plessis is at the front of it. Now Strickland just needs to get healthy enough to face the man who already beat him twice.

Here is Du Plessis in the octagon right after Saturday’s win:

Should Du Plessis get the immediate title shot, or does the UFC make Du Plessis vs. Chimaev 2 for an interim belt while Strickland recovers? Drop your take in the comments.

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