2026 UFC Fight Night: A 'Nigerian Nightmare' Enters Oklahoma Seeking Victory Over Dricus Du Plessis
The Paycom Center is in Oklahoma City and has hosted multiple events during its time. The event most are excited to see will happen July 18th at 8:00 p.m. EDT. This event is none other than UFC Fight Night. The two fighters on the title card are none other than former Men’s Middleweight Division Champion Dricus Du Plessis and Kamaru Usman. It is a matchup that’ll help determine who takes a step up and who takes a step down in the Men’s Middleweight Division. The fighters themselves are looking forward to it, as both are in the top 10 of the division trying to make their way to being the Men’s Middleweight Champion.
Du Plessis is the younger fighter who comes in at 32 years old. He’s been with the UFC since 2020 and has stacked win after win until his last fight, which was his third title defense. In that fight, he lost by unanimous decision against Khamzat Chimaev. This was shocking because he previously won his second title defense against Sean Strickland. It suffices to say he’s looking to get back to a title shot given how it ended. In this matchup, he leads with landing 5.18 strikes per minute. This is even expressed in his record of 23-3-0, which was achieved with 11 wins by knockout. Plus, his strike accuracy is sitting at 51%, making him the decisive striker in this bout and the nickname ‘Stillnocks’ more of a reality with the strikes that keep his opponents stilled and knocked out.
Usman is the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ challenging him and is less of a striker when compared against his 32-year-old opponent. In fact, he is 39 years old, which could be a factor in the speed of his strikes. However, he’s gotten multiple unanimous decision wins in the past. This demonstrates that while the speed of his strikes is not what he focuses on, he does utilize caution and technique. He could drag this fight out into the final round as a result and feel comfortable doing so since his takedown defense is 89% with his 21-4-0 record. He can not only defend himself against any strikes made against him, but he can also prevent any quick first-round submissions.
The current outlook of this match favors ‘Stillnocks’ as the victor from this matchup. He could be, too, but only if he understands the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ will be anticipating the strikes. If the 32-year-old fighter does, he will utilize every second of this fight to accurately land strikes that the 39-year-old opponent will try to deflect or dodge. Usman could turn the fight around if he can interrupt any rhythm or momentum Du Plessis seeks to create. In effect, this matchup is a standing game of caution and planning. The victor will understand that and want to dominate the majority of the time while not allowing any ground to be made by the opponent.
The statistics don’t paint an unrealistic picture of the outcome fans will see July 18th. They will see the picture painted with a unanimous decision win by ‘Stillnocks’. This is not because ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ isn’t prepared to take him down, but it's because he will not land more strikes per minute than his 32-year-old opponent. The 39-year-old fighter could turn the match into his win, but if he does, he’s going to need to be less cautious and more aggressive throughout this bout. If he does not, then fans who watch in person or stream live through Paramount+ will see Du Plessis break free from this nightmare to wake up for another title shot.
