"He's not going to be part of the story" - Chael Sonnen sternly advises Dricus du Plessis to show up at UFC 293 if he wants to fight Israel Adesanya

Israel Adesanya will defend his middleweight title against Sean Strickland at UFC 293 this weekend after Dricus du Plessis did not take the bout. Former middleweight and light heavyweight title challenger Chael Sonnen believes that if 'Stillknocks' wants to be the next middleweight title challenger, he needs to be in attendance at UFC 293.

Speaking on his podcast, Beyond the Fight, the mixed martial arts analyst stated:

"If Izzy wins, it appears that it's going to be du Plessis or [Khamzat] Chimaev should he beat Paulo Costa... While we think it's going to be du Plessis, make no mistake, there is some marching orders. Israel has told du Plessis you need to be here. Step number one, you need to come here and you need to be here, for whatever reason, but he's not joking about that."

Sonnen continued:

"If he's in the cage that night and he looks out and there's no du Plessis, who did not do the one thing that Izzy told him you need to do, I don't think he's going to call him out and the other side of this, it would be hard for him to call out Chimaev... If du Plessis doesn't go, I do not believe he's going to be part of the story."

Check out Chael Sonnen's comments on Israel Adesanya and Dricus du Plessis below (starting at the 1:33 mark):

Sonnen added that if du Plessis is not present at UFC 293, Adesanya may go a different route. While he does not believe 'The Last Stylebender' will call out the winner of the UFC 294 bout between Khamzat Chimaev and Paulo Costa, he suggested a different opponent or another opportunity at double champ status as an option.

Israel Adesanya weighs in on Dricus du Plessis' reported absence from UFC 293

Israel Adesanya will look for his sixth title defense, and first in his second run as middleweight champion, when he faces Sean Strickland at UFC 293 this weekend. Dricus du Plessis, who 'The Last Stylebender' originally hoped to face, will reportedly not be present. Speaking with TheMacLife, the middleweight champion was informed that 'Stillknocks' did not fly into Sydney, Australia for the event, responding:

"He didn't? I just assumed he did. Idiot. He could've jumped in there and called me a ni**a, too."

Check out Israel Adesanya's comments on Dricus du Plessis below (starting at the 4:28 mark):

Adesanya was referring to UFC 290 when he entered the cage to call du Plessis out following the latter's victory over Robert Whittaker. It is unclear if he remains interested in fighting 'Stillknocks' following UFC 293.