Nigeria’s former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) belt holder, Kamaru Usman may face complaints over competing in a higher weight category when he faces Dricus Du Plessis of South Africa on July 18th, Sports247 gathered.
Although the bout is being touted as a huge opportunity for Usman to fight his way back into Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) reckoning, ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ might end up facing a very stiff challenge, as he is set for only his second fight at a higher weight than his natural level.
Information on offer from UFC’s headquarters indicate that, while Usman is a former welterweight champion, he will again contest in the middleweight class against Du Plessis, who is also an ex-title holder and previously defeated Israel Adesanya.
Usman and Du Plessis will clash at UFC Fight Night in a 185-pound main event inside Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, USA, where ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ had initially been billed to take on Islam Makhachev at his natural weight category.
However, Usman has virtually been forced to take a step up in weight, after UFC ultimately went in a different direction by booking Makhachev’s first welterweight title defense against Ian Machado Garry in the month of August.
Usman, who has 21 victories and four defeats, was clamouring for a welterweight title shot against Makhachev, who will now headline UFC 330 with his title defence against Garry, while Nigeria’s MMA icon faces a slippery bout with Du Plessis.
A report by ESPN’s Brett Okamoto added, “Rather than try to hold his spot in the welterweight rankings, Usman, 39, opted to move up. The former long time 170-pound champion will have a chance to assert himself in his new weight class.
“Du Plessis (23-3) defended the middleweight championship twice between 2024 and 2025 before losing a five-round decision to Khamzat Chimaev in August. It was Du Plessis’s first loss in the UFC after starting his career in the Octagon 9-0.
“He is still ranked No. 2 in the division, while Usman has positive history with current middleweight champion Sean Strickland. He defeated Strickland by unanimous decision in April 2017, as the two were coming up in the welterweight division.”
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