UFC 312 live updates: Dricus du Plessis vs. Sean Strickland 2 results, round-by-round analysis and highlights

Dricus du Plessis and Sean Strickland rematch in the main event of UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia on Saturday night. (Photos: Getty Images via Zuffa LLC. Design: Davis Long, Yahoo Sports.)

Uncrowned has UFC 312 results, live round-by-round updates, start time and highlights for the Dricus du Plessis vs. Sean Strickland 2 fight card on Saturday at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia. Just 13 months after their closely contested first title showdown, UFC middleweight champion du Plessis and former champion Strickland meet in a winner-takes-all rematch in the night’s main event.

Du Plessis (22-2) defeated Strickland (29-6) in a somewhat polarizing split decision in January 2024 to capture the 185-pound title, however Strickland has since maintained that he should’ve won the bout.

Du Plessis, 31, is a perfect 8-0 under the UFC banner, with six of those wins coming in stoppages. His list of triumphs include a trio of former champions — Israel Adesanya, Robert Whittaker and Strickland — as well as former contenders Derek Brunson, Darren Till and Brad Tavares. A native of South Africa, du Plessis seeks his second title defense after previously submitting Adesanya in August, again in Australia.

Strickland, 33, is one of UFC’s most controversial figures, known for his brash antics both on the mic and outside the cage. Inside the cage, however, he’s an astute technician who captured Fighter of the Year plaudits for many outlets in 2023 after upsetting Adesanya to win the middleweight crown. Strickland has fought just once since losing to du Plessis — a tepid split decision over Paulo Costa in June — but owns notable contender wins over Nassourdine Imavov, Brendan Allen and Jack Hermansson.

In the co-main event, two-time UFC strawweight champion Zhang Weili (25-3) seeks the third defense of her belt in her current reign with a showdown against undefeated TUF 23 winner Tatiana Suarez (10-0).

Both women are ranked within Uncrowned’s pound-for-pound rankings, with Zhang slotted in as the No. 2 female fighter in the world and Suarez coming in at No. 10 despite her lack of title accolades.

UFC 312’s start time for the preliminary card is at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+. The main card begins live at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ pay-per-view.

Follow along with Uncrowned’s live UFC 312: Du Plessis vs. Strickland 2 results and live blog below.