Dricus Du Plessis hints at attending UFC 328 in Newark this weekend

UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis has signaled he will be in attendance at UFC 328 in Newark this Saturday, May 9, posting on social media to suggest he is making the trip and playfully hinting at "unexpected" encounters once he arrives.

Du Plessis, ranked second in the middleweight division and seventh in the pound-for-pound standings, carries a record of 23-3-0 and has established himself as one of the most active strikers in the weight class. The 32-year-old South African, who trains out of Team CIT, stands six-foot-one with a 76-inch reach and lands an impressive 5.18 significant strikes per minute at 48 percent accuracy. He also adds a meaningful wrestling dimension, averaging 2.22 takedowns per fifteen minutes.

The event he is attending features a high-profile middleweight collision between Hamzat Chimaev and Sean Strickland, and Du Plessis's presence in the building naturally raises the prospect of face-offs or promotional interactions with whoever emerges victorious.

Strickland, listed as champion in the middleweight division, brings a record of 31-7-0 into the bout. The 35-year-old American out of Xtreme Couture is one of the sport's highest-volume strikers, landing 6.04 significant strikes per minute, and shares the same six-foot-one frame and 76-inch reach as Du Plessis.

Why it matters

• Du Plessis's attendance puts the reigning champion ringside for a bout that could determine his next title challenger.
• A Chimaev or Strickland victory, combined with a public face-off, could accelerate title-fight negotiations at 185 pounds.
• The stylistic overlap between Du Plessis and Strickland — identical height, reach, and heavy striking output — would make a rematch or first meeting a compelling divisional headliner.