Michael Web page is thought for having a difficult, difficult-to-deal-with type, however even he has to tip his cap to UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis.
This Saturday’s UFC 319 headliner sees du Plessis defend his middleweight title towards the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev. Du Plessis is but to lose contained in the octagon, having compiled a 9-0 UFC document, with wins over marquee names similar to Israel Adesanya, Robert Whittaker, and Sean Strickland. Alongside the best way, du Plessis has acquired each reward and criticism for his brutish strategy to preventing that doesn’t at all times look fairly, however hasn’t failed him but.
Web page is selecting Chimaev to dethrone du Plessis, however believes loads of credit score needs to be given the place it’s due if du Plessis comes out on high but once more.
“I’m going to say Khamzat and I’ve been telling everybody precisely the identical factor: If DDP wins this battle, I’m by no means betting towards this man ever once more in my life,” Web page mentioned at UFC 319 media day on Wednesday. “I really feel like lots of people really feel the identical means, there’s one thing about his type that’s not interesting, however profitable. I believe it’s that not interesting facet that retains making us query his capability to win.
“His particular present that—we often see by way of my sort of level type or Khamzat’s wrestling, like you may sort of see the apparent—his not so apparent apparent might be simply the truth that he is aware of how you can be robust and grind out a win. Which may simply be his expertise. He’s OK sufficient when it comes to his blended martial arts talent to simply work out a strategy to success and which may simply be his factor.”
Web page is presently dabbling within the middleweight division himself as he’s set to battle one-time UFC title challenger Jared Cannonier at Saturday’s occasion in Chicago. A longtime welterweight contender for Bellator, Web page hasn’t declared any intention to chase 185-pound gold, though placing back-to-back wins over Cannonier and the beforehand unbeaten Shara Bullet would mark Web page as a darkish horse within the division.
One factor he’s undoubtedly not enthusiastic about is preventing Adesanya, an in depth buddy. Except the costs is true.
“We’re prizefighters and I’m an individual of respect,” Web page mentioned when requested about Adesanya. “I can battle somebody that I respect extremely, however you’re going to need to pay us some huge cash and I’m hoping this $7.7 billion deal does one thing for that, perhaps. If I get given some huge cash and I believe similar for him, we’d 100% be like, ‘Bro, let’s simply have our battle.’ However the likeliness shouldn’t be on the cash they pay us and I receives a commission good.”
Ought to Web page stick round at middleweight, he insists that whereas he enjoys not having to chop all the way down to 170 kilos, his latest profession transfer is strictly pragmatic. Web page likes to remain busy and if the alternatives to guide fights are at 185 kilos, then that’s the place the matchmakers can discover him.
“Bear in mind, I come from a contest circuit background the place I’m preventing generally as much as 21 occasions in someday, and that’s at completely different weight divisions as properly, completely different kinds of preventing,” Web page mentioned. “It’s not the load that stops me from performing, it’s extra to do if there’s alternatives to take a battle. So yeah, I prefer to be energetic, and it looks as if middleweight will permit me to be extra energetic.”
