← All fights/Event page

Middleweight

3 Rounds

Dricus Du Plessis won · KO/TKO R2

Elo1511

Elo1542

Dricus Du Plessis editorial illustration

Robert WhittakervsDricus Du PlessisUFC Prediction Result

UFC 290: Volkanovski vs. Rodriguez · Saturday, July 8, 2023Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

Official fight result

Dricus Du Plessis won

KO/TKO · Round 2 · 2:23

Style matchupRobert Whittaker: Well-roundedvsDricus Du Plessis: Wrestler

Well-rounded fighters typically have the tools to neutralize wrestlers if their TD defense is sharp.

Model Prediction: Dricus Du Plessis wins(78.3%)

Actual result: Dricus Du Plessis wins · Model version: ufc_v6_2_pure_lightgbm_20260715_055615

Correct

Scouting Report

Auto-generated signals worth knowing before you read the deep stats below.

Robert Whittaker has 48pp better takedown defense — controls where the fight happens.
Stance matchup historically favors Dricus Du Plessis (52.9%).

Tale of the Tape

Robert Whittaker

Red Corner

Dricus Du Plessis

Blue Corner

—

Vegas Odds

—

1511

Elo

1542

Age

Orthodox

Stance

Switch

6'0"

Height

6'1"

185.42 cm

Reach

193.04 cm

Recent Form

Last 5 fights for each fighter — most recent on the right. Hover any result for the matchup.

Robert Whittaker

oldest →

vs Paulo Costa · Feb 24

KOvs Ikram Aliskerov · Jun 24

SUBvs Khamzat Chimaev · Oct 24

vs Reinier de Ridder · Jul 25

KOvs Nikita Krylov · Jul 26

latest

Dricus Du Plessis

oldest →

vs Sean Strickland · Jan 24

SUBvs Israel Adesanya · Aug 24

vs Sean Strickland · Feb 25

vs Khamzat Chimaev · Aug 25

DECvs Kamaru Usman · Jul 26

latest

Output & Defense Comparison

Rate-normalized career statistics. Bold side has the edge per metric.

Robert WhittakerMetricDricus Du Plessis

4.39

Strikes / min

5.18

3.36

Strikes absorbed / min

4.33

59%

Strike defense

52%

0.73

TDs / 15 min

2.22

82%

Takedown defense

34%

0.00

Sub atts / 15 min

0.70

Net striking (SLpM − SApM)

+1.03evenly matched on net striking+0.85

Statistical Profile

Career averages · bigger area = stronger across dimensions

Robert WhittakerDricus Du Plessis

Recent Elo Trajectory

Last 10 fights for each fighter, aligned right (most recent on the right).

Robert Whittaker(10 fights)Dricus Du Plessis(10 fights)

Model Feature Differentials

Red − Blue for each engineered feature. Bar leans toward the stronger fighter.Hover a label to see what it measures.

ELO Rating

Red -30.9|Blue +30.9

Recent Form

Red -0.5|Blue +0.5

Striker Score

Red +1.9|Blue -1.9

Grappler Score

Red -0.3|Blue +0.3

Layoff

Red +182.0|Blue -182.0

Red Corner advantageBlue Corner advantage

Strike Breakdown

Where the strikes landed. Head accuracy is the single strongest predictor of fight outcomes.

Robert WhittakerTargetDricus Du Plessis

By target zone

39% acc · 74%

Head

49% acc · 61%

50% acc · 6%

Body

85% acc · 18%

86% acc · 19%

Leg

93% acc · 21%

By position

43% acc · 94%

Distance

53% acc · 66%

100% acc · 6%

Clinch

80% acc · 13%

Ground

76% acc · 21%

Round-by-Round Scoring (Model)

Statistical round-winner heuristic based on strikes, takedowns, control time, and knockdowns. Not the official judges' scorecard.

Robert Whittaker rounds

even

Dricus Du Plessis rounds

Round 1Dricus Du Plessis edged it

Sig. strikes22

Takedowns1

Control0:23

29Sig. strikes

1Takedowns

0:55Control

Round 2Dricus Du Plessis edged it

Sig. strikes9

Takedowns0

Control0:00

Knockdowns0

33Sig. strikes

0Takedowns

0:02Control

1Knockdowns

Statistical round count agrees with the official result.

Fight Stats

Totals

31 / 70

Sig Strikes

62 / 104

42%

Sig Str %

59.5%

32 / 71

Total Strikes

74 / 118

1 / 1

TDs

1 / 1

100%

TD %

100%

Sub Att

Rev

0:23

Ctrl Time

0:57

Round-by-Round

Round	Fighter	Sig Str	Total Str	TD
1	Dricus Du Plessis	29 / 54	41 / 68	1 / 1
1	Robert Whittaker	22 / 44	23 / 45	1 / 1
2	Dricus Du Plessis	33 / 50	33 / 50	0 / 0
2	Robert Whittaker	9 / 26	9 / 26	0 / 0

Robert Whittaker

StanceOrthodox

Height72.0"

Reach73.0"

Fights26

Dricus Du Plessis

StanceSwitch

Height73.0"

Reach76.0"

Fights11