What Dricus Du Plessis told Cameron Saaiman after UFC loss

South African MMA star Cameron Saaiman suffered his first professional defeat in his last UFC outing but got some advice from mentor Dricus du Plessis.

Saaiman suffered a decision loss to Christian Rodriguez in a catchweight bout after his opponent failed to make weight for a ranked bantamweight battle.

What Dricus Du Plessis told Cameron Saaiman after UFC loss

Du Plessis pulled alongside his young CIT teammate and gave him some words of encouragement.

“He’s doing good… He’s never felt defeat in his whole life, even as an amateur,” Du Plessis told MMA News. 

“You can tell a guy like Cameron whatever you want, but I know what it feels like to get that first loss… especially when you put in the work that he does, that we do. We go out there to win every single time.

“What I said to him was, ‘Don’t think about fighting at all right now, because right now you are so angry with yourself and you are thinking about that loss,'” Du Plessis continued. 

“I told him he’ll know when he’s ready to go in there and go again. When you stop thinking about the loss and you start thinking about the next win, that’s when you know you’re ready… I told him, my first loss was local, it’s embarrassing. His first loss was on a three-fighting winning streak in the UFC at the age of 22. That’s incredible. I don’t even think it has any effect.”

Bigger and better things

Saaiman is a star on the up though, having recently launched his own website and YouTube channel.

He is not currently ranked in the UFC’s bantamweight division.

However, that might change when he takes on Payton Talbott.

Saaiman and the unbeaten American will clash on the UFC Fight Night: Ribas v Namajunas fight card at the UFC Apex centre in Enterprise, Nevada on Saturday, 23 March.

Next up

Talbott and Saaiman also used the Dana White’s Contender Series to fight their way into the UFC.

In his final DWCS win, Talbott really made an impression on the boss.

“This kid is an absolute predator,” UFC President Dana White said post-fight.

“He keeps moving forward, he seems unfazed by everything that happens, he plays the mental game, he keeps talking to his opponent. He’s only 24 years old. If this kid can keep his head together, I can’t wait to see him at 27.”

Talbott said that he soaked up the praise but wouldn’t allow it to go to his head. He acknowledged that he has a lot of work to do to get where he wants to be in the UFC.

“It was super special to hear [White] say what he said,” Talbott said. “I think I kind of expected it going into that fight; I have a lot of high expectations for myself. At the end of the day, Dana’s words mean a lot to me, but nothing means more than what I say to myself.”