Drakeus du Plessis opens his phone, leans forward and says: “Look at this.”
It's his Facebook page, and he's showing a video of Springboks players – including two-time World Cup-winning captain Sia Kolisi, veteran fullback Handre Pollard and Jesse Creel – wishing him well in his middleweight title fight at UFC 297 in Toronto at the end of this year. the week.
Starting this weekend, Main Event on Kayo Sports and Foxtel will be the exclusive home for UFC Pay-Per-View events in Australia.
As you scroll down, his feed is full of stories, videos and graphics about his title challenge against Shawn Strickland.
For a man who once dreamed of wearing a Springboks jersey in a World Cup before taking the leap into the unknown of professional fighting, this is a big deal to take in.
“There are watch parties all over South Africa, the Springboks are making videos – everyone is going crazy,” du Plessis says in the masthead.
“My fight seems to be the only thing going on in South Africa.
“It's a very new sport in comparison, but the support is crazy. It's like a World Cup for us.”
Du Plessis believes MMA is close to overtaking cricket in popularity in South Africa, but you have to go back 12 years to get a true understanding of how far the sport has come in the rainbow nation.
A gifted child who grew up in a rugby-obsessed family, Du Plessis played under-19 Currie Cup for the Blue Bulls and toured Argentina as a teenager.
He was a fan of Schalkeberger and dreamed of one day playing at Loftus Versfeld, Ellis Park or Newlands while wearing a green Springboks jersey. He received a fully paid sports scholarship to play rugby and study, but soon gravitated towards fighting.
Just a week before he was due to start his studies, he decided to give up rugby and focus on fighting.
His old man was angry.
“Until I was 18, rugby was what I wanted to do for a living,” the letterhead says.
“My father wasn't happy at all, because I was still an amateur and he didn't know what I would do for money.
“He also had to pay for my education, but I loved fighting so much.”
No one in South Africa knew what mixed martial arts was at the time, but Du Plessis had a simple reason for taking the path he chose.
“I've been playing rugby since I was five, I knew I was good at rugby – I honestly thought I could have been a Springbok player,” he says.
“But I don't think I'll be great.
“I don't think I would have had the same impact in rugby as I do in fighting.
“In fighting, I have something special.”
His decision has already paid off, as du Plessis has cracked the UFC's middleweight division en route to his title shot as he becomes a legitimate star in his home country.
He estimates five times more people follow MMA now than a decade ago, and insists more people will follow his fight than any Proteas cricket this year.
Although he no longer plays, rugby is still a big part of his life.
Hours before his UFC 290 win over Robert Whittaker last year, he steeled himself by watching the Boks thrash the Wallabies 43-12.
Later in the year, he sat in the presidential box alongside Novak Djokovic and Jason Momoa, as South Africa won their fourth Rugby World Cup in a thrilling final against the All Blacks.
“The greatest day of my life,” he says simply. “It was amazing.
“It was history, becoming the first team to win four World Cups, against New Zealand, our arch enemy. It was crazy.
“Guys like Siya Kolisi are people I look up to. I said goodbye to them at the airport before the World Cup, and that was one of the biggest honors of my life.
“They are superheroes, but now I am seen as a superhero in my country, it is a great feeling.
“South Africa is a great country, especially when it comes to sports and celebrating athletes.
“Now this weekend I get my chance to make history too.”
