The UFC returns to Australia for UFC 305 later this month when the middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis defends his title against fierce rival and former champion Israel Adesanya in the main event.
These fighters have gone back and forth over the last 18 months in a very personal rivalry and will finally get to settle their differences in the octagon for the biggest prize in the sport, support by the likes of Steve Erceg, Kai Kara-France, Dan Hooker and more on the undercard.
We'll take a look at the main event and break down each fighter to provide you with our best free UFC betting picks, and try to earn you some extra cash while you take in the action in the cage.
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UFC 305 information
- Saturday, August 17th 2024
- RAC Arena, Perth, Australia
- Middleweight Championship (185 pounds)
- 5 x 5 minute rounds
- Main card starts at 22:00 ET
Dricus Du Plessis vs Israel Adesanya
An incredibly intriguing fight awaits the fans in this one as champion Du Plessis defends his belt for the first time, while looking to extend his winning streak to 10. He comes into this fight with a professional record of 21-2, with nine knockouts and ten submissions to his name.
His UFC debut came Markus Perez back in 2020 and he earned a first-round knockout to make a statement, before he faced off against Trevin Giles and earned a second-round knockout in his next bout. That set him up for a clash against Brad Tavares and the South African earned a decision win to remain undefeated in the UFC.
Up next was former welterweight title challenger Darren Till, who he submitted in the third round via face crank, before a a late finish on Derek Brunson in his next fight put him into title contention. He faced off with "The Reaper" Robert Whittaker next in a title eliminator and shocked the world when he earned a second-round stoppage, earning himself a title fight.
That was supposed to be against Adesanya, but he needed nasal surgery and therefore the next title shot went to Sean Strickland who defeated Izzy in stunning fashion to win the belt. Strickland and Du Plessis faced off in January for the title, with Du Plessis winning the belt via split decision in a back and forth war.
Adesanya hasn't fought since that defeat to Strickland, and comes into this fight with a professional record of 24-3 with 16 knockouts.
"The Last Stylebender" opened his UFC career with a stunning nine-fight win streak, which included victories over Anderson Silva, Yoel Romero, Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum. His first defeat came when he moved up to light heavyweight to try and become a double champion, but ran into Jan Blachowicz and was out-grappled to a decision defeat.
He returned to middleweight and defeated Marvin Vettori, Whittaker again and Jarred Cannonier before suffering defeat to long-time rival Alex Pereira. He claimed revenge in their rematch though to win the title back via a second-round knockout in his next fight, before losing to Strickland. This will be his first fight since September 2023.
Route to victory
Du Plessis has been very active since coming into the UFC, while Adesanya is coming off his longest lay off since joining the organisation, which means the champion must look to be sharp and aggressive early.
Adesanya is one of the cleanest and most technical strikers in the history of the sport, so he will look to maintain distance and use his kickboxing to great effect. That includes low calf kicks and quick counter-strikes, and using the speed advantage he has over his rival.
However, Du Plessis will know that just like everyone else does and will surely make his game plan obvious too. "Stillknocks" has got very effective wrestling and submissions, and he can use that to not only control Adesanya, but also to set up his powerful striking in the process too.
He must close the distance on Adesanya and make the fight as ugly as possible by clinching, throwing elbows, and dirty boxing to ensure that Adesanya isn't controlling the tempo and distance of the fight.
Check out our review for BetOnline sports betting here.
UFC Picks: Du Plessis to retain
A year ago most people would have said that Adesanya's clean and technical style would be too much for Du Plessis, but this fight is coming at the perfect time for the champion.
Strickland's performance showed that constant pressure and forcing Adesanya to fight off the back foot for 25 minutes has a huge effect on him, and with Du Plessis far more willing to take the fight to the ground too and be a threat from top position it gives him a lot more paths to victory.
With that said he is far easier to hit than Strickland is, and if he gets hit clean then Adesanya has the power to turn the lights out. If Du Plessis can stay safe and mix in his grappling, then he is a very live underdog to go on and win this fight while retaining his undisputed middleweight championship.
Check out our review for Bovada sports betting here.
