Overview
- The UFC officially confirmed Dricus Du Plessis vs. Kamaru Usman as the middleweight main event for July 18 at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, a booking announced Tuesday and set to stream on Paramount+.
- Du Plessis publicly said Usman initially resisted signing the contract and that the UFC had to convince him to accept the fight, a claim reported across multiple outlets on June 23.
- The promotion added at least eight undercard bouts to the card, including Jared Cannonier vs. Christian Leroy Duncan and Kevin Holland vs. Jacobe Smith, with prelims at 5 p.m. ET and the main card at 8 p.m. ET on Paramount+.
- Early betting markets opened with Du Plessis installed as the favorite and pundits such as Jorge Masvidal warning that Usman’s wrestling and control make him a difficult matchup for Du Plessis.
- The matchup pairs a former middleweight champion seeking to answer questions about his wrestling after a title loss with a former welterweight champion moving back to 185 pounds, and the winner would gain immediate leverage in the middleweight title picture.