UFC 297 LIVE: Strickland vs Du Plessis fight updates and results tonight

Re-live updates from the middleweight title fight, as well as a clash for the vacant women’s bantamweight belt

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Dricus Du Plessis took the middleweight title from Sean Strickland at UFC 297 on Saturday, beating the controversial American via split decision.

Strickland won the belt from Israel Adesanya in September, in one of the biggest upsets in UFC history, but his first defence was an unsuccessful one.

Du Plessis entered the main event on the back of a surprise TKO of former champion Robert Whittaker last July, and although the South African failed to replicate that explosive performance, he just did enough to emerge victorious.

After five rounds, the judges’ scorecards read 48-47, 47-48, 48-47 in favour of Du Plessis, though the result could easily have gone the other way.

In the co-main event, Raquel Pennington beat Mayra Bueno Silva via unanimous decision to win the vacant women’s bantamweight title. Re-live updates and see all the results from UFC 297 below.

UFC 297 LIVE

• Dricus Du Plessis wins split decision to take middleweight title from Sean Strickland
• Raquel Pennington beats Mayra Bueno Silva for vacant women’s bantamweight title
• Neil Magny produces stunning comeback with 15 seconds left
• Chris Curtis heaps more misery on Canadian fans in Toronto
• Britain’s Arnold Allen comes up short against Movsar Evloev
• Plus full prelim results from UFC 297 at the Scotiabank Arena

[20 January 2024 23:33 · Alex Pattle]

UFC 297 LIVE: Strickland vs Du Plessis

Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis will clash for the UFC middleweight title tonight, with the vacant women’s bantamweight belt also on the line in Toronto.

Strickland won the middleweight title with a seismic upset of Israel Adesanya in September, and now the controversial American makes his first defence of the belt. Meanwhile, South Africa’s Du Plessis enters the main event on the back of a surprise TKO of ex-champion Robert Whittaker in July.

Strickland and Du Plessis have fought each other before, in a sense, having brawled in the crowd at UFC 296 in December, and fans are expecting a scrappy contest this evening.

In the co-main event, Raquel Pennington will fight Mayra Bueno Silva to crown a new women’s bantamweight champion, seven months after the icon Amanda Nunes retired and relinquished the belt.

Sean Strickland (left) and UFC middleweight title challenger Dricus Du Plessis (AP)