Dricus Du Plessis has opened up about his sparring session with Alexander Volkanovski ahead of his fight with the Australian’s teammate at UFC 305.
‘Stillknocks’ and ‘The Great’ traded fearsome shots at the world-renowned Tiger Muay Thai gym in Phuket, Thailand.
Alexander Volkanovski held his own during sparring session with Dricus Du Plessis
Later tonight, Dricus Du Plessis will defend his world championship against Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 inside the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.
The pair of sporting icons have gone head-to-head in the trash-talking department, with the verbal exchanges becoming so intense that ‘The Last Stylebender’ shed a tear at the press conference.
The All-African grudge match has captured the imagination of the MMA community, with fans around the globe desperate to see who will claim the bragging rights.
And incredibly, their story began years before they ever even reached the UFC, with the superstars crossing paths at Tiger Muay Thai.
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During their time in Thailand, Du Plessis sparred with Alexander Volkanovski.
The combat sports phenoms traded leather during high-paced rounds in the Phuket heat, with the South African admitting that the former featherweight world champion took him down despite the size difference.
During a joint interview with MainEvent, the pair reminisced over the session.
The 185-pound King said: “When I saw the video, I immediately remembered him; I mean, the man still had hair. I was 19 or 20 years old when that happened.
“When me and him were sparring, I remember him taking me down. When I saw the video, I went, ‘I remember the session clearly, and I thought, ‘S**t, he’s a featherweight’.”
Volkanovski added: “It is crazy. Even having us sparring and then having Izzy come and randomly bump in. It’s like, ‘How did this happen in the middle of Thailand’? It was so weird. Every time I see it, it blows me away, especially with the level we’re at now.”
A reflective Du Plessis concluded: “Petr Yan was in that room too, but none of us were in the UFC yet. The only person who was making a name for himself was Mairbek Taisumov.
“That’s the beautiful thing about this sport. We were all chasing the same dream. Look at us now. There were four or five world champions who were training there at the same time that weren’t in the UFC yet.
“That’s special footage to see. Look at how far we’ve come. We got there different routes. Now, we have rivalries, but at the end of the day, we all started the journey with the same vision in mind.”
Israel Adesanya wants to make Dricus Du Plessis ‘respect’ The Three Kings at UFC 305
While the middleweight title-holder gets on well with Volkanovski, the same can’t be said about his teammate.
Adesanya despises Du Plessis, and wants to make him pay when they clash in the cage this evening.
The Nigerian-born kickboxer claims that his rival doesn’t give Francis Ngannou and Kamaru Usman the credit they deserve.
In an exclusive interview with Bloody Elbow, Adesanya revealed why this has aggravated him so much
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