Dricus Du Plessis vs Sean Strickland 2 UFC 312 Live Blog

Dricus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland clashed in a rematch in the main event of UFC 312.

The pair previously fought at UFC 297 where DDP dethroned Strickland to win UFC Middleweight Championship. DDP had since beaten Israel Adesanya while Strickland defeated Paulo Costa in his only bout in the meantime. Who did win the rematch here?

To find out, tune in below for live round-by-round updates from Dricus Du Plessis vs Sean Strickland UFC Middleweight Championship main event bout at UFC 312.

LIVE BLOG

Round 1: DDP quickly switches stances. They check their reach with fake jabs before DDP lands a kick to the ribs. DDP keeps himself out of the range and lands another kick to the body. Strickland lands some jabs. DDP lands a couple of high kicks. He goes for calf kicks next. Strickland keeps looking for his jabs, but most of them gets blocked. DDP also replies with jabs this time. More jabs attempted by Strickland. Both men have now resorted to jabs. DDP lands a spinning heel kick before a lull in the fight. Both men are stopping in their attack many times. DDP lands a couple of more body kicks. Strickland lands a good jab before faking some kicks. He lands a front kick. DDP pushes him back with a combo attempt.

Round 2: Sean fakes some front kicks. DDP also fakes a side kick before he lands a couple of kicks all over the body. Several half hearted attacks from Strickland. They both go for front kicks at the same time. Then, they both go for rights at the same time. DDP lands calf kicks and punches. He lands a big jab. Strickland pushes him back with a front kick but DDP lands a hook. Strickland lands a jab. Both fighters getting more busy. DDP lands a right jab. Strickland has to defend a left hook. DDP lands a high kick. The champion is looking better of the two. He attempts a couple of spinning kicks but they do not land perfectly. Sean lands a couple of jabs. DDP hits kicks to the thighs before landing one to the face. He ducks a jab and lands a punch to the body. He lands inside leg kicks and shots at the body to end the round.

Round 3: DDP once again starts with a high kick. A lots of feints from both sides. Strickland blocks a high kick. DDP mixes up his kicks quickly before landing a left punch. He connects a combo again. Strickland lands a jab. He also lands a high-low combo on the body. DDP goes for the calf kicks. He lands a body kick. Strickland catches him low for a brief pause. Strickland lands a right. DDP goes for the body kick again. He lands a spinning punch. He keeps up the pressure with a mixture of attack on the body. Strickland lands a counter right in the middle of all this. He lands another good jab. DDP lands a spinning elbow. He lands a kick to face before they exchange punches quickly. Sean lands a cross and a punch. DDP has to resort to a takedown attempt. Sean lands a hook to end the round.

Round 4: DDP starts with a body kick. Strickland touches his face with kicks. DDP tries to land so much but ultimately lands a big shot. DDP lands big punches which has broken Strickland’s nose. Strickland is pouring blood. DDP has uped the ante now and is keeping Strickland on the backfoot continuously. DDP is targeting only the face with his punches. Strickland is not doing much other than defending. He tries to land some kicks. DDP pushes him back again with quick punches. Strickland lands a big punch in between all this. DDP is cautiously working and targeting the face only with his punches. Strickland is trying to keep him away with front kicks. DDP has to pull out of a spinning elbow as the round ends.

Round 5: DDP starts the round attempting punches to the face again. Strickland is defending mostly early in the round. He goes back to looking for jabs. DDP is also mixing up his attack with kicks and varied punches. He lands another big punch. He lands a kick to the ribs. DDP tries a combo of jabs, spinning kick and body shots, but Strickland maintains his composure. He pushes Strickland back again with quick shots. Strickland is backtracking mostly and is attempting his jabs in between. DDP continues to vary his attack. Strickland attempt to rally late in the round but could not do much.

Official Decision: Dricus Du Plessis won via unanimous decision(50-45, 50-45 49-46)