Age has been cited as a major difference that gave the edge to South Afirca’s Dricus du Plessis in his clash with Nigeria’s Kamaru Usman during a terse middleweight challenge contest between two former title holders on another stage of Ultimate Finghting Chaampionship (UFC) in the early hours of Sunday.
READ ALSO: Usman Learning from the Bottom Again, Seeks Redemption Against Du Plessis After 13-Month Layoff
Sports247 reports that ‘The Nigerian Nigghtmare’ entered The Octagon aged 39, while his opponent appeared fitter at 32, which Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) experts reckoned gave Du Plessis advantages in terms of speed, stamina and absorbing power, all that apparently came to the fore as the fight entered its crucial stage.
It turned out to be a fight for the ages, with Du Plessis eventually knicking it with a unanimous decision over Usman after five rounds of the middleweight main event at UFC Fight Night in Oklahoma City, USA, where judges scored the bout 50-45, 50-45, and 49-46.
It was a historic win for Du Plessis, who previously won his first nine UFC bouts and held the middleweight belt from January 2024 until August 16th, 2025 – but had not fought since his loss to Khamzat Chimaev, while Usman had been a welterweight champ before stepping up in division.
However, Usman had also been out for 13 months after losing his last UFC bout, and he looked out of steam in a tight fight that had no successful takedowns or submission attempts, while Du Plessis didn’t appear rusty, as he pulled off a 139-99 edge in total strikes and landed 136 fists to Usman’s 92.
A report by Yahoo Sports noted in part, “The speed of Du Plessis (24-3) was an early X-factor, along with his significant size advantage against the former welterweight champion. Over the course of five rounds, Du Plessis consistently found high-impact right hands.
“(While) mixing in heavy step-in knees and head kicks to hurt Usman (21-5), Du Plessis was defensively sound against minimal takedown attempts, ultimately earning a unanimous decision (50-45, 49-46, 49-46).”
However, regardless of what analysts thought, and the fact that he even hard a thumb in the eye from a Du Plessis fist early in the bout, Usman declared that he had no excuses for his UFC Fight Night 281 loss, which he admitted came from a very tough clash in The Octagon.
Usman retorted: “It was a little tough to get going. I took kind of like a thumb punch in the eye early on, and that kinda blurred the vision a bit. But, you know, no excuses. It is what it is.”
Sports247 reports further that retirement is now loming for Usman, who was the UFC’s world welterweight champion from March 2019 to November 2021, but he has lost four of his last five fights, while his return from a 13 month hiatus ended in another defeat early on Sunday.
