At UFC 312, Dricus Du Plessis (22-2-0) defends his UFC Middleweight title for the second time against Sean Strickland (29-6-0), who he took the belt from in a close fight decided via split decision last January.
UFC 312 will take place on Saturday, February 8th at the Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney, Australia.
The fights will begin at 6 PM ET with the Early Preliminary Card, followed by the Preliminary Card at 8 PM ET and the Main Card at 10 PM ET.
Our article will give you our two best bets for the main event, as well as the current moneyline odds for Dricus Du Plessis vs. Sean Strickland II.
The first contest between these two was predominantly a striking battle and little is likely to change in this rematch.
Both men throw high volume whenever they step in the octagon, with Du Plessis landing 6.18 significant strikes per minute to Strickland’s 6.01.
The champion absorbs slightly more with his unorthodox style, taking 4.85 significant strikes per minute, while the American absorbs 4.48.
Strickland rarely uses takedowns as an offensive tool but does have a strong 77 percent takedown defense.
Du Plessis averages three takedowns every 15 minutes and was able to land six of 11 takedowns in the first fight, however, a total control time of 2:08 showed Strickland was generally able to get back up pretty swiftly.
We know Strickland will land strikes at a high volume, but he rarely finishes his opponents with his jab and teep kick-dominated defensive approach.
The 33-year-old’s second-round TKO of Abus Magomedov in 2023 is his only stoppage victory in the last four years.
Du Plessis has finished six of his eight UFC fights, including Israel Adesanya, Robert Whittaker, Derek Brunson and Darren Till.
Brad Tavares and Strickland are the only two that have seen the final bell after sharing the Octagon with the 31-year-old, but did so in defeat.
The forward pressure from the South African has proved a hard problem for all opponents to solve so far, and it looked to be a decisive factor with close rounds being scored in his favor in the first fight against Strickland.
Strickland will likely go about his usual gameplan and unless he can catch Du Plessis, he may have a tough time winning this on the scorecards.
Dricus Du Plessis | Sean Strickland | |
Moneyline | -200 | +170 |
By Decision or Technical Decision | +160 | +240 |
By KO, TKO or DQ | +350 | +850 |
By Submission | +550 | +2400 |
Total Rounds | Over | Under |
1.5 | -700 | +425 |
2.5 | -370 | +265 |
3.5 | -250 | +185 |
4.5 | -190 | +140 |
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.