Dricus faces a long road back to top

It appears as though Dricus du Plessis faces a long road back to the top after relinquishing his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweight title at UFC319 in Chicago yesterday.

- Clinton Jones

Du Plessis had no answers for undefeated Russian Khamzat Chimaev's wrestling as he succumbed to a unanimous decision defeat.

The Russian found the going very easy as he took the South African down to the canvas at will and dominated for most of the 25 minutes.

Du Plessis failed to use his striking as Chimaev (right) tired him out, covering Du Plessis like a blanket.

"He was just like a blanket. It wasn't a matter of strength, it wasn't that physical, it was just as if he knew what your next move was going to be," Du Plessis said in his octagon interview after the fight.