South African welterweight Dricus Du Plessis captured belts in two promotions before joining the UFC. | Photo via KSW
UFC welterweight newcomer Dricus Du Plessis will replace injured Rodolfo Vieira against Markus Perez at the Oct. 10 UFC Fight Night event in Abu Dhabi, multiple sources confirmed to MMA Fighting following a report from Combate.
Du Plessis (14-2) is a former KSW welterweight champion and ex-EFC welterweight and middleweight titleholder who never went the distance as a professional MMA fighter. The South-African talent won 10 of his past 11 bouts, including a second-round knockout over Croatian prospect Roberto Soldic.
Perez (12-3) is looking to get back on track after losing a decision to Wellington Turman in Nov. 2019. “Maluko” had multiple bouts with Alessio Di Chirico, Eric Spicely, Charlie Ontiveros and Rodolfo Vieira cancelled since then for various reasons.
The Fight Night card will take place on Abu Dhabi’s Fight Island and feature Marlon Moraes vs. Cory Sandhagen in a bantamweight main event.