'Shot in the head' survivor stands in Dricus Du Plessis' 'corner' as MW champion gets emotional about his friend's 'near-death decisions' ahead of UFC 305

The hype surrounding the fight between Dricus Du Plessis And Israel Adesanya at UFC305 is pretty high. Despite the heated insults flying from both sides, Du Plessis got emotional on media day when talking about one of his teammates. Needless to say, a fighter can't make the journey to the top of one of the most prestigious MMA promotions in the world alone. And the UFC middleweight champion was grateful for the people who stood by him.

However, Du Plessis' love for his teammates came through when he spoke about one of his friends who narrowly escaped death on several occasions. Let's see what the South African champion had to say.

Dricus Du Plessis talks about his teammate with numerous near-death experiences

At UFC 305 media day, one of the reporters asked “Stillknocks” about his friend who had survived a stroke, a ruptured spleen and a gunshot wound to the head. Undoubtedly, something like that could take your life in a matter of seconds. But surviving all that made him a man, and Du Plessis was proud to have him by his side.

The South African mixed martial arts fighter said“That's right. The man is my friend, one of my best friends. ATN is a legend in South African rugby. He played professional rugby all over the world. And just like you said, the man had several strokes and was shot in the head. He had a crazy, crazy story…” He is actually one of the few who trained with Du Plessis. However, the rugby star had to move to the USA. But that didn't affect their friendship. “Stillknocks” claimed that ATN was there for him at each of his fights. And it's safe to assume that he will be there at UFC 305.

The South African fighter then revealed that it was nothing less than motivation. After all, through so many near-death experiences, people develop a perspective on life that makes them appreciate it even more. DDP said“You think winning a fight is motivation. Look at this man. Look at that… it's just motivating to have someone like him around who appreciates life for what it is. He's been so close to death so many times and just shows appreciation and love for everything around him. It's incredible to have someone like him around you because he has such a clear sense of what life is really about.”

Having such a friend in your circle really motivates you to appreciate life and look at the way of life from a whole new perspective, don't you think? But even then, a former UFC fighter believed that Du Plessis would be on the losing side.

UFC veteran predicts outcome of Du Plessis vs. Adesanya

As the debate about the “real African” gained momentum on the Internet, the entire fighting scene began to speculate about the outcome of the main event at UFC 305. And Chael Sonnen was one of them. “The American Gangster” spoke on his talk show about how “Stillknocks” had more experience in the art of grappling than his opponent. But that wouldn't help him defeat Adesanya. It was all down to one aspect of the former champion's style – Adesanya never gives up!

Sonnen claimed: “I don't think Dricus can take him down. I don't think he can take Izzy down any easier than Gastelum, any easier than Yoel Romero, any easier than Brunson. I think he's going to have to fight, and Dricus goes right at it and wears guys down. He makes them give up. And that's the one thing I can't say about Izzy, no matter how bad his performance was, I've never seen that man give up.”

Nevertheless, Du Plessis is confident going into his fight at UFC 305 with his close friend by his side. Will his friend's good wishes come true this time? Only time will tell.

What do you think about the difficulties Du Plessis' teammate has been through? Let us know what you think in the comments below.