Dricus Du Plessis’ head coach Morne Visser has pushed back on Kamaru Usman’s in-fight complaints from their UFC Fight Night 281 headliner at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City this past Saturday.
Du Plessis and Usman clashed in the main event, where Usman asked the referee to step in during the bout, claiming an eye poke and a low blow. Visser later dismissed those complaints while outlining a conservative strategy built around composure rather than hunting a stoppage.
"The game plan was 100 percent to completely stay composed, and that's what (Du Plessis) did," Visser said, adding that he repeatedly instructed his fighter not to chase a finish even when he believed Usman was hurt.
"I saw that Kamaru does recover very quickly after getting hit that hard and punched that hard in the face. I mean, he was out a couple of times on his feet, but I shouted very loudly to Dricus just to stay composed and pick the shots because a guy who recovers that quickly is dangerous. He's desperate."
Visser also framed the performance as a major step for Du Plessis after a long layoff and following his previous loss to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319. "This was a high-pressure fight. I mean, this was our comeback fight after 10, 11 months off. So, I'm very happy. And he listened. We never pushed for anything. We never pushed once for the finish, not even once. I mean, you saw Kamaru complaining about a low blow and the thumb or the finger, all nonsense. Dricus could have finished him there, but he was just not pushing. He was just respectful."
