Second-ranked Dricus du Plessis is squaring off against ninth-ranked Kamaru Usman in a middleweight clash this Saturday, with du Plessis entering the main event as a hefty -230 favorite. This isn’t just another fight night, folks, it is a battle of former champions with a lot on the line for both guys.
Du Plessis: A Champion’s Redemption After a Title Shot
Du Plessis, who is only 32, is a force, sitting at second in the Meta UFC middleweight rankings for a reason. This dude’s resume is stacked: he’s not just a former UFC middleweight champion, but he also held the welterweight and middleweight Extreme Fighting Championship titles, and even a Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki welterweight championship. His record of 23-3 in 26 career matches is wild, with nine wins by knockout, eleven by submission, and three by decision. He’s won 11 of his last 12 fights, proving he’s consistently at the top. Plus, he’s the first South African fighter to ever win a UFC title and is tied for fourth-most UFC middleweight title wins with three. He’s also snagged two Performance of the Night bonuses. His last time out was a unanimous decision loss to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319 in a middleweight championship bout, so you know he’s hungry to get back to his winning ways.
Usman’s Comeback Trail and the Betting Line Shockwave
On the other side of the cage, we’ve got Kamaru Usman, currently ranked ninth. Usman just pulled off a unanimous decision win over Joaquin Buckley at UFC on ESPN: Usman vs. Buckley on June 14, 2025. Why is that so big? It snapped a brutal three-bout losing streak for him, so he’s finally got some momentum back. Now he’s staring down a du Plessis who is the -230 favorite, meaning you have to risk $230 to win $100. Usman, the underdog, is at +190. The oddsmakers have the over/under for total rounds set at 3.5, with the over at -200 and the under at +154. You gotta wonder if Usman can keep that momentum rolling against such a tough favorite, especially with Kyle Marley, an elite MMA expert from SportsLine, revealing his picks after studying this one from every angle. Marley’s a wizard too, with $100 bettors following him up nearly $10,000 over the last three-plus years, and over $21,000 since May 2018. He even hit five consecutive main-event underdog winners back in 2020.
So, what are you waiting for? This five-bout main card kicks off Saturday at approximately 7 p.m. ET from Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Okla. You can catch all the action live on Paramount+. Get ready for what’s sure to be an absolute slugfest!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
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