Former UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis will face former welterweight kingpin Kamaru Usman in the headline bout of UFC Fight Night scheduled for July 18 at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.
The UFC officially announced the clash during the UFC Fight Night broadcast featuring Manel Kape and Kyoji Horiguchi, confirming a high-profile showdown between two of the promotion’s most accomplished former champions.
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Du Plessis, who famously defeated Nigerian star, Isreal Adesanya to retain the UFC middleweight title in 2024, returns to action for the first time since losing the belt to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319 last August.
The South African fighter remains one of the division’s most dangerous competitors, boasting victories over former champions Isreal Adesanya and Robert Whittaker during his title-winning run.
For Usman, the bout represents another opportunity to cement his legacy in a new weight class.
The Nigerian-American fighter ended a difficult spell in his career with a victory over Joaquin Buckley last year after suffering three consecutive defeats, including two consecutive title-fight losses to Leon Edwards which ended his middleweight reign and a middleweight defeat to Chimaev in 2023.
Kamaru, former welterweight champion has gradually embraced life at 185 pounds and now faces one of the division’s elite contenders in what could have major implications for the middleweight title picture.
The Oklahoma City event marks the UFC’s first visit to the city in nearly a decade and only the fifth UFC event ever held in the state of Oklahoma.
Several notable bouts have already been added to the card, including Kevin Holland versus Jacob Smith, Jared Cannoier vs Christian Leroy Duncan and Brad Tavares vs Canada’s Marc -Andre Barriault.
With Du Plessis seeking a route back to championship contention and Usman aiming to make a statement in the middleweight division, the main event promises to be one of the most intriguing matchups on the UFC calendar this summer.
