The Sias du Plessis Show

Dwaine Pretorius is one of the most underrated cricketers ever to play for South Africa, the allrounder, who retired from international cricket in 2023, is still plying his trade in the T20 leagues all over the world. Pretorius predicts that this is South Africa's best chance to end their long and painful wait for the World Cup title and believes that the Proteas go into the tournament brimming wi...

The Ultimate Fight Championship's middleweight champion, Dricus du Plessis, joins me on the show to talk about his upcoming title defence (against Israel Adesanya), his quest to become a two-division champion in the UFC, what it would take to bring the UFC to South Africa, why he is inspired by Conor McGregor and why he believes he has what it takes to be the greatest UFC athlete of all time.

Akani Simbine and Werner Prinsloo have been a duo since the young sprinter answered an advert in a local newspaper to join an athletics club, well, the rest as they say is history. The formidable pair have been inseparable and produced the goods year-on-year. Simbine and the 2022 South African coach of the year were in the studio to talk about the Olympic Games in Paris, the infamous disqualificat...

The talented former South African netball player, Vanes-Mari du Toit shares her journey in the sport, how she transitioned into a successful television career and speaks about her daring world-record attempt later this year where she will take a very cold plunge... The bubbly Vanes-Mari also opens up on various other things including watching her first-ever Soweto derby, the pressure to constantly...

Hekkie "The Hexecutioner" Budler is one of South Africa's most successful boxing world champions, boasting a professional record of 35 - 5 with 11 KOs, the 35-year-old double-weight division WBA and IBO world champion is regarded as a legend of the sport. Budler has fought in Mexico, Japan, the USA, Canada and the Philipines, he has decided to call time on his illustrious career and focus on his y...

Richie Quan is a pioneer in South African combat sports. Head coach at the Quan Wessels Academy in Johannesburg, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt has led the way in Mixed Martial Arts for over two decades, coaching athletes in the UFC, One Championship, PFL and EFC promotions. Quan is also a certified field medic and firearms instructor and teaches self-defence in his spare time. The husband and...

Former South African test captain, Dean Elgar brings his "baggie green" cap into the studio and shares his cricket journey from the sleepy town of Welkom to playing at the biggest stadiums in the world. The 86-test veteran also clarifies what happened with him and Virat Kohli and why he chose cricket over squash.

Daniel Bennett is a legend in African football. The former FIFA, CAF and Premier Soccer League referee boasts over 750 professional games in his stellar career and continues to do work for football leagues and associations all over the world. The proud father-of-two opens up about his career, dealing with stars like Didier Drogba and David Beckham, the abuse he received, how he was approached with...

African combined Sport climbing champion Lauren Mukheiber joins me in the studio to talk about her expectations ahead of the Olympic Games in Paris, and the pressure to represent in a sport that captured the world's imagination as it made its debut in Tokyo. A marine biologist by trade, the talented climber is eager to make a name for herself at the global event in Paris later this year.

Bafana Bafana legend and former South African goalkeeper, Andre Arendse joins me in the studio to chat about winning Africa's biggest football prize, his move to Fulham and why he chose to come back to South Africa to play for Clive Barker's Santos at a time when he was linked with Harry Redknapp's West Ham. The man who made 67 appearances for his country speaks about his special relationship with...

Gift Walker is one of the most exciting MMA talents on the African continent, the 22-year-old, who is 5-0 as a professional, has a fascinating story, abandoned as a baby, Walker was adopted by a white family and fell in love with the sport of MMA. Walker was crowned EFC Flyweight champion in 2023 and now has his sights set on the UFC.

Kerim Fitz-Gerald is a South African Motocross legend, a 10-time National champion and the 2023 National Cross Country champion, Kerim has competed all over the world including Canada and captaining South Africa at the World Cup of Motocross. His next adventure is taking on the 2024 Dakar, a daunting challenge for the rookie who isn't going to the world's toughest race to make up the numbers.

Former Bafana Bafana defender Matthew Booth joins me on the show as we discuss his career in Russia, how he nearly signed for West Ham and what it was like facing Brazil in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup and being part of the squad that saw South Africa host the first FIFA World Cup on African soil. He now works as a pundit for SuperSport and is the driving force behind Legends football in South...

The legendary rugby journalist Brenden "Baksteen" Nel joins me in the studio to discuss the year that has been in rugby, the sensational Springboks winning their 4th Rugby World Cup title, what the next move is for Rassie Erasmus after Jacques Nienaber's departure. We chat about his brand new book, Derick Hougaard, the drama that followed arguably one of South Africa's most talented rugby players,...

The legendary Mandy Wiener is one of South Africa's most credible journalists, the current host of the Midday Report on 702 and Cape Talk and has published numerous best-selling books. For the past two decades, Mandy has worked as a multi-award-winning reporter specialising in investigative journalism and legal matters including the Oscar Pistorius case. Mandy is an avid sports fan and loves Totte...

Henk Lategan will miss the 2024 Dakar due to injury, but the 27-year-old knows that it is only because his body needs time to heal after a crash that saw him dislocate his shoulder backwards! The talented Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa driver has competed in previous editions of the Dakar and aims to win the famous desert race in the future in the DKR GR Toyota Hilux +1. The multiple South Afric...

Brian Mitchell is South Africa's only boxer inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame. The 14-time world champion lost only once in 49 professional fights and shares his story, growing up in a rough neighbourhood in Johannesburg, he always wanted to box, eventually shooting to stardom. Mitchell was presented with the Ring belt 36 years after winning the coveted title in December 2022.

Caster Semenya is the greatest 800m and 1500m South Africa has ever produced, the "Golden Girl of Athletics" has unfortunately been subjected to gender testing, forced to take testosterone-lowering medication that made her feel sick, excluded from her favourite events due to controversial DSD regulations, she tells all in her book, "The Race to be Myself" and doesn't shy away from any of the never...

Janine van Wyk will become Africa's most capped footballer when she plays in the South African national team's two qualifiers for the 2024 Women's Africa Cup of Nations, the Banyana stalwart will bring the curtain down on a stellar 20-year career that saw her play at the country's first World Cup, win a WAFCON and feature in an Olympic Games. van Wyk shares her incredible journey from playing with...

Kagiso Rabada is arguably one of the greatest fast bowlers South Africa has ever produced. The 28-year-old has played 60 tests, 92 ODIs and 56 T20s, he has become a key player in the South Africa national team and the other franchise teams he plays for including MI Cape Town in the Betway SA20. Rabada is also intent on giving back and speaks about his fast bowling academy and desire to win the 202...

Kirby Gordon is the Chief Marketing Officer for one of the most successful low-cost airlines in the world, Fly Safair. Gordon shares his story, the upward trajectory of the airline and why the travel industry is such an exciting space after the COVID pandemic. A must listen.

Demarte Pena is a legend of South African and African Mixed Martial Arts, the reigning Ares bantamweight champion has had to fight his way to the top after a controversial 4-year suspension that saw him cleared before WADA sanctioned him. The founder of the Wolf Academy gym is determined to fight in the UFC and continue his legacy as a proud Angolan athlete.

Victor Matfield was arguably one of the best locks in world rugby, the former Springbok captain and World Cup winner, capped 127 times, shares his views on the upcoming Rugby World Cup, what he thinks makes the Springboks special and why he chose rugby as a career. We're grateful he did! Don't miss this episode rugby fans.

Mark Hulme is one of Africa’s most exciting mixed martial arts athletes, the Extreme Fighting Championship welterweight champion recently embarked on a journey of self-discovery walking from Johannesburg to Cape Town where he believes he found a new energy and passion for life, the UFC-bound Hulme has fought in Russia previously and accompanied his teammates Dricus du Plessis and Cameron Saaiman t...

Junior Dala is a South African cricketer who has represented the "rainbow nation" on several occasions and is a stalwart for the Titans cricket union in Centurion, the talented all-rounder joins us to share his journey to the Proteas and why he was born in Zambia, how his father was exiled and why Ian Healy changed his life forever.