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The main event of the UFC Oklahoma City card was the long-awaited middleweight bout between Dricus Du Plessis and Kamaru Usman. After five rounds, the judges had no doubts and unanimously awarded the victory to the South African fighter.
For Du Plessis, this was his first fight since losing his middleweight championship belt. Eleven months earlier, at UFC 319, he was defeated by Khamzat Chimaev, who took the title from him. Prior to that loss, “DDP” had remained undefeated for ten consecutive fights, defeating, among others, Sean Strickland twice, Israel Adesanya, Robert Whittaker, and Darren Till.
Kamaru Usman, meanwhile, entered the bout on the heels of a convincing victory over Joaquin Buckley in June 2025. That victory ended a streak of three consecutive losses, which included two defeats to Leon Edwards and one to Khamzat Chimaev.
From the very first minutes, Du Plessis set a fast pace and took control of the fight. He effectively used kicks and straight punches, and at the end of the round, he clearly rocked Usman with a powerful right. The former welterweight champion responded with sporadic strikes, but it was “DDP” who made the better impression.
The second round belonged to the South African fighter even more decisively. Du Plessis landed consistent knees and boxing combinations, rocked his opponent hard several times, and forced him to make desperate takedown attempts. At one point, Usman even found himself on the mat after another flurry of punches, but he quickly got back into the fight.
The third round was the most evenly matched. Usman began to counter more frequently and even landed a successful takedown, but Du Plessis immediately got back to his feet. The former middleweight champion remained the more active fighter, scoring with kicks and strikes while standing.
In the fourth round, “DDP” regained control. A few high kicks clearly rocked Usman, who nonetheless showed great resilience in the face of the blows. “The Nigerian Nightmare” tried to turn the tide of the fight with powerful strikes, but it was Du Plessis who landed more often and came out on top in the exchanges.
The fifth and final round provided fans with plenty of excitement. Both fighters pressed forward and exchanged powerful blows, though once again Du Plessis landed more accurate strikes. Usman kept looking for a chance to turn the fight around right up until the very end, but when the bell rang, it was clear that he needed a knockout.
After five rounds, the judges unanimously awarded the victory to Dricus Du Plessis, who made a successful comeback after losing his championship belt and once again established himself among the top contenders in the UFC middleweight division.
‘STILLKNOCKS’ IS BACK 🫳@DricusduPlessis returns to the win column as he earns the UD victory in dominant fashion at #UFCOKC! pic.twitter.com/HggNzKReJR
— UFC (@ufc) July 19, 2026
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