Official judges' scorecards have been released for Dricus du Plessis' UFC middleweight title win over Sean Strickland

UFC have release the official scorecards from the judges following Dricus du Plessis' middleweight title win over Sean Strickland.

Du Plessis squared off against Strickland in the UFC 297 main event at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto and the two engaged in a brutal five-round war inside the Octagon.

The bout went the distance and it was the 30-year-old who came out on top, becoming the first South African champion in UFC history following the judges' decision.

It was a split decision, with two judges giving the fight to the challenger and the other believing Strickland did enough to retain his title.

Both Derek Cleary and Eric Colon scored it 48-47 in favour of Du Plessis, having been in complete agreement about the spread of the rounds.

In their view, Strickland won the first and final round but Du Plessis got the better of his opponent in the remaining three.

However, Sal D'Amato saw it differently. He scored it 48-47 for Strickland and felt he won rounds one, three and five.

The decision was seen as a controversial one by many, with UFC co-commentator Joe Rogan branding the result "very interesting" and suggesting there would be a backlash online.

The outcome was also bad news for rap megastar Drake as he lost a whole lot of money.

With Stake, 'Drizzy' placed a whopping $700,000 (£551,000) bet on Strickland to win and would have had collected more than £1 million.

However, with Du Plessis' narrow win, the four-time Grammy Award winner suffered yet more misery when it comes to betting on combat sports.

UFC president Dana White also scored the fight very evenly but felt as though Strickland took it in the final round.

"It’s funny. We were just looking at how the media had scored it: right down the middle. I had it 2-2 going into the last round and I thought Strickland won the last round,” White told MMA Junkie at the post-fight presser.

"“Guys who were sitting at the same table had it the other way. It was a close fight. I thought Strickland looked great in the first two rounds."

Featured Image Credit: UFC

Topics: UFC

Josh Lawless

Josh is a sports journalist who specialises in football and wrestling. He has been published by Curzon Ashton FC, Late Tackle, Manchester City FC, The Mirror, Read Man City and Manchester Evening News. He provides coverage of professional wrestling and has interviewed some of the biggest names in the field - including the first UK interview with The Hardy Boyz after their return to WWE. He has never sported a pair of Lonsdale Slip-ons, contrary to reports.

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