Africa won tonight, say Adesanya and Du Plessis

Israel Adesanya points to an brushwood astir 4 months agone which tin now sum up his rivalry pinch Dricus du Plessis.

"There was a South African feline successful my taxi. And he said: 'You know, erstwhile you and Dricus fight, moreover if you triumph aliases he wins, I consciousness for illustration I win'," said Adesanya.

"And I said 'exactly'. And past we took a picture, it was a beautiful moment."

The build-up to Nigeria-born New Zealander Adesanya's conflict pinch South Africa's Du Plessis astatine UFC 305 - nan first all-African title bout successful UFC history - had been sour.

Du Plessis, 30, claimed he was nan UFC's "first existent African champion" - a remark which riled two-time UFC middleweight champion Adesanya, who erstwhile held titles alongside chap Nigerian Kamaru Usman and Cameroon's Francis Ngannou.

Du Plessis clarified his remark by saying he is nan first champion that still resides connected nan continent, pinch Adesanya, Usman and Ngannou each moving elsewhere, but nan bitterness remained during a charged pre-fight news conference.

But, aft a captivating main arena successful Perth, Australia wherever Du Plessis submitted nan 35-year-old Adesanya to clasp his middleweight title, nan brace settled their differences earlier agreeing Africa was nan existent victor successful nan bout.

"I deliberation Africa won coming and arsenic I said earlier, he's going to animate nan adjacent procreation of African fighters, conscionable nan measurement me, Kamaru Usman and Francis Ngannou inspired him to go an African champion," said Adesanya.

After nan conflict Du Plessis gave Adesanya his jacket, which is embroidered pinch a South African flag, arsenic a show of respect.

He besides referenced erstwhile South African president and activistic Nelson Mandela, who helped conflict for group equality successful nan country.

"Izzy and I won't beryllium friends because connected a individual level we don't spot oculus to oculus but warrior to warrior, aft spending that clip successful nan octagon pinch him, you can't not respect that man," said Du Plessis.

"To springiness him that overgarment was a token of appreciation, a convey you for this memory. Win aliases suffer I was going to springiness him nan overgarment arsenic reminder of an all-African main event.

"It intends nan world to maine that athletics brings group together. The awesome Nelson Mandela, that is what he said - 'sport unites group successful a measurement that authorities tin ne'er do', and that is simply a fact. That's what you saw tonight.

The UFC is yet to big an arena successful Africa but nan organisation says it is thing it wants to schedule sooner alternatively than later.

Speaking aft nan arena successful Perth, UFC executive David Shaw referenced UFC 304 successful Manchester past month, which took spot done nan nighttime and early greeting to service an American audience.

The arena successful Perth was besides scheduled to service a US audience, pinch nan preliminary paper starting astatine 08:30am Eastern Australian time.

He said a pay-per-view arena successful South Africa would apt reflector nan arena successful Manchester because of akin clip zones successful nan state and that raises questions for nan UFC.

"The Dricus business is tough, he's a champion truthful are going to return a pay-per-view there? We've conscionable done Manchester truthful it's imaginable but we besides want to make a bully first impression," said Shaw.

"Coming to Africa for nan first time, do we want to do an arena successful nan mediate of nan night?

"The short reply is we've sewage a fewer different countries we are targeting, thing to study correct now, but this is decidedly a 2025 thing, we don’t want to hold overmuch longer."