Dricus Du Plessis acknowledged Conor McGregor's significant contribution to the growth of MMA. Du Plessis noted that people often say no one can be bigger than the sport itself, yet McGregor managed to achieve exactly that. He emphasized that McGregor made a substantial impact on the development of mixed martial arts. The post reflects widespread recognition of McGregor's influence on the sport's popularity and mainstream appeal.
Dricus Du Plessis has spoken publicly about Conor McGregor's outsized influence on the growth of mixed martial arts, offering a notable endorsement of the Irishman's legacy in the sport.
Du Plessis, the second-ranked middleweight contender and number seven on the pound-for-pound ladder, acknowledged what many in the industry have long debated. The 32-year-old South African noted that while the common wisdom holds that no individual can be bigger than the sport itself, McGregor proved that notion wrong. Du Plessis credited him with making a substantial impact on MMA's development and its crossover into mainstream culture.
Du Plessis carries a 23-3 record and trains out of Team CIT. Standing six-foot-one with a 76-inch reach, he fights out of a switch stance and brings considerable volume to his game, landing 5.18 significant strikes per minute at 48 percent accuracy. He also averages 2.22 takedowns per 15 minutes, making him a genuinely well-rounded threat in the division.
McGregor, now 37, holds a 22-6 record and competes out of SBG Ireland. The Dublin native built his reputation as one of the sport's most precise and damaging strikers, landing 5.32 significant strikes per minute at 49 percent accuracy across his career. His ability to generate mainstream attention far beyond the traditional MMA audience is widely regarded as a turning point for the sport's commercial reach.
Why it matters
- Du Plessis is a current top contender, giving his words weight within the active fighter community
- McGregor's mainstream impact reshaped MMA's global commercial landscape, and recognition from a top-ranked fighter underscores the durability of that legacy
- The comments reflect an ongoing conversation in the sport about individual stardom versus institutional growth
