UFC 305 Adesanya vs. Du Plessis: Live updates and analysis

Dricus Du Plessis defends his middleweight title against two-time former champ Israel Adesanya in the main event of UFC 305 on Saturday, Aug. 17, in Perth, Australia.

The main card at RAC Arena will be on ESPN+ pay-per-view at 10 p.m. ET, with prelims on ESPN and ESPN+ at 8 p.m. and early prelims on ESPN+ at 6:30.

Du Plessis (21-2) has won nine fights in a row, most recently a split decision over Sean Strickland in January to win the 185-pound title. Du Plessis is No.1 in the ESPN middleweight rankings.

Adesanya (24-3) has not fought since losing his title to Strickland by unanimous decision last September. He is No. 7 in ESPN’s pound-for-pound men’s rankings.

What are the storylines behind the top fights at UFC 305? How are experts breaking them down? What do the fighters have to say? Here is the fight card, how to watch it and a collection of all of the UFC 305 essentials.

Where do betting experts and MMA analysts lean on Adesanya-Du Plessis?

How to watch the fights

Watch the PPV and all other fights on ESPN+: Get ESPN+ here.

Watch the prelims on ESPN. Download the ESPN App | WatchESPN | TV schedule

Don’t have ESPN? Get instant access.

Purchased the fight on your phone and want to stream on your TV? Find out how here.

There’s also FightCenter, which offers live updates for every UFC card.

The fight card

Emotional Adesanya delivers passionate message ahead of UFC 305

Israel Adesanya shares an emotional moment with his family at the UFC 305 news conference ahead of his title fight against Dricus du Plessis.

Middleweight championship: Dricus Du Plessis (c) vs. Israel Adesanya
Men’s flyweight: Kai Kara-France vs. Steve Erceg
Lightweight: Mateusz Gamrot vs. Dan Hooker
Heavyweight: Tai Tuivasa vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
Welterweight: Li Jingliang vs. Carlos Prates
Heavyweight: Junior Tafa vs. Valter Walker
Featherweight: Josh Culibao vs. Ricardo Ramos
Women’s flyweight: Casey O’Neill vs. Luana Santos
Featherweight: Jack Jenkins def. Herbert Burns
Lightweight: Tom Nolan def. Alex Reyes
Welterweight: Song Kenan def. Ricky Glenn
Men’s flyweight: Jesus Aguilar def. Stewart Nicoll
(c) = defending champion

‘It’s the old Izzy, but also old Izzy’

By the time Adesanya steps into the cage, his sabbatical will have lasted just over 11 months. His hiatus included two months when he didn’t step in a gym for “his own sanity.”

“I had no idea how long I’d be gone, but I knew it wasn’t going to be until 2027,” Adesanya said. “That was a joke. Don’t worry. I’m back now.”

The time away allowed the 35-year-old to rethink how to be a professional athlete, along with finding the proper motivation to get into the Octagon, before his fire to compete could be completely extinguished.

“Heavy is the head that wears the crown, and I have both a big ass head and a big ass crown,” Adesanya said.

Hale: At UFC 305, a motivated Israel Adesanya is back

Storylines: Adesanya-Du Plessis rivalry, heavyweight slobber knockers, more

When the eight-sided cage returns to Australia on Saturday, the former two-time champ will challenge Dricus Du Plessis in the main event of UFC 305 in Perth. On the line will be not just a shiny strap but the pride of a continent 5,000 miles away, as both fighters are rooted in Africa, though with far different life experiences.

That’s the genesis of just one of several intriguing storylines that will play out this weekend. Here are five things to watch for at UFC 305.

Wagenheim: UFC 305 storylines – Can Adesanya reclaim the middleweight crown?

Burning fire drives Dricus du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya

When South Africa’s Dricus “Stillknocks” du Plessis was awarded the UFC middleweight belt in January, beating Sean Strickland in a split decision, his first request was: “Bring me my flag.”

Grabbing the Rainbow nation’s colors was a moment of symbolic significance for his gym, CIT Performance Institute, which he co-owns with longtime friends and training partners Claudia and JT Botha, and all the work they’re doing to grow the sport at home.

Du Plessis, sitting on a box jump cube, post-workout, told ESPN: “The flag represents to me that this is not just my title — this is the country’s title — the flag represents the amazing support I’ve been getting, and we’ve been getting.

Solms: Du Plessis will defend ‘the country’s’ UFC belt against Adesanya

Rest, reset and golf: Inside Israel Adesanya’s 11-month hiatus

But rewind back to 2023 as Adesanya and du Plessis looked set to meet before the year was out, or at least early in 2024, and the Nigerian-born New Zealander’s shocking loss to Sean Strickland took the prospect of that matchup off the table.

Just like that, Adesanya was gone.

“That was definitely the straw that broke the camel’s back, because it’s not just the fights, it’s the camp as well, the training. That’s what really got to me, and my body just wasn’t right,” Adesanya told ESPN of his decision to step away from the sport.

Bruce: Inside the ‘leveling up’ of Israel Adesanya