With both fighters being deceptively difficult to kill, their first encounter back at UFC 297 ended up being a tactical, back-and-forth battle that saw Du Plessis narrowly scrape out a split decision win on the scorecards to become the new champion at 185 pounds.

This is the second title defense for the 31-year-old Du Plessis (22-2), a -210 favorite at BetMGM Sportsbook. He defeated Israel Adesanya with a fourth-round submission Aug. 17 in Perth, Australia.

UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis has Sean Strickland to fend off at UFC 312, but there's a wolf on the hunt. Khamzat Chimaev is next in line for a title shot and many are convinced he'll win.