Tag: UFC 297

Sean Strickland Buries the Hatchet with Dricus Du Plessis, Blames ‘Cuck’ Sean O’Malley for Bad Blood

Sean Strickland and Sean O'MalleySean Strickland attacked Dricus Du Plessis in the stands at UFC 296 last month and has since threatened to…

Sean Strickland and Sean O'Malley

Sean Strickland attacked Dricus Du Plessis in the stands at UFC 296 last month and has since threatened to stab him, but the reigning middleweight titleholder wants you to know that it’s nothing personal.

According to Strickland, the rift that had him throwing hands with his South African opposition last month rests squarely on the shoulders of UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley. During the trio’s appearance at the promotion’s seasonal press event in December, ‘Sugar’ threw some shade at Strickland by bringing up his troubled childhood.

Following O’Malley’s lead, Du Plessis further targeted Strickland’s traumatic past, bringing things to a boiling point that eventually spilled over into the crowd inside T-Mobile Arena 24 hours later.

“Here’s the thing, it was never f*cking personal,” Strickland said during the UFC 297 press conference. “You had the cuck Sean O’Malley say some stupid sh*t he knows nothing about. I go hard on everybody. You don’t think I deserve some sh*t? I go hard on all you motherf*ckers. I’m proud of the motherf*cker. You don’t see me lose character often, this motherf*cker got me there” (h/t MMA Mania).

Sean Strickland Promises Fight Fans a ‘War’

It’s certainly not the first time Du Plessis has found himself in a heated confrontation with a UFC champion. Following his impressive second-round KO of Robert Whittaker in July, then-champion Israel Adesanya entered the cage for a racially-charged staredown that had fight fans chomping at the bit to see them square off inside the Octagon.

Strickland spoiled those plans with his dominant decision victory over ‘The Last Stylebender’ two months later, but ‘Tarzan’ has promised fans a bloody brawl in the UFC 297 headliner.

“Here’s the thing about Dricus, he ain’t f*cking Izzy — Dricus likes to fight,” Strickland continued. “He likes to fight and he’s a hell of a fight. Do you know what that means? We’re going to be d*ck to d*ck, nipple to nipple in that range f*cking fighting. I hope after we’re done, win or lose, we’re f*cking bloody and we put on a show for you f*cking guys. Applaud him and encourage him. Because we want a f*cking war!”

UFC 297 goes down on January 20 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. The winner of Strickland vs. Du Plessis may find themselves tasked with taking on former two-time titleholder Israel Adesanya, who will be sitting cageside for Saturday’s festivities.

Video – UFC 297’s Sean Strickland Punishes Powerslapper with Rib-Breaking Body Shots While Sparring

Sean StricklandSparring with Sean Strickland is not advised. Power Slapper Coltin Cole found out the hard way when he stepped…

Sean Strickland

Sparring with Sean Strickland is not advised.

Power Slapper Coltin Cole found out the hard way when he stepped inside the ring with the reigning UFC middleweight world champion during a recent episode of PowerSlap: Road to the Title. Cole.

“Who wants to box?” Strickland asked the group of PowerSlap hopefuls working out at the facility. Cole quickly stepped forward prompting Strickland to ask if he had any boxing experience. Cole claimed to have had one professional boxing match, 22 amateur MMA fights, and twelve pro MMA fights.

That’s all Strickland needed to hear.

As expected, ‘Tarzan’ didn’t hold back during their brief encounter, landing some brutal body shots that eventually dropped Cole. It was just another day at the office for Strickland, but Cole was left the worse for wear, noticing a painful lump developing over his ribs. It’s uncertain if Cole suffered a broken rib, but he was noticeably struggling to move.

On Saturday, January 20, Strickland will put his 185-pound crown on the line for the first time since claiming the crown with a decisive unanimous decision victory over Israel Adesanya in September.

Standing in Strickland’s way of his first successful defense at UFC 297 is Dricus Du Plessis, a South African finisher riding an eight-fight win streak, including a stunning second-round knockout of Robert Whittaker over the summer.

Video – ‘Savage’ Fan Storms the Stage at UFC 297 Press Conference to Shake Sean Strickland’s Hand

Sean Strickland UFC 297 press conferenceSean Strickland got an unexpected visit from an overzealous fan during Thursday’s UFC 297 media scrum. On Saturday night,…

Sean Strickland UFC 297 press conference

Sean Strickland got an unexpected visit from an overzealous fan during Thursday’s UFC 297 media scrum.

On Saturday night, Strickland will put his middleweight world title on the line for the very first time as he meets South African finisher Dricus Du Plessis in the evening’s main event. 48 hours ahead of their highly anticipated title tilt, Strickland and ‘Stillknocks’ were addressing members of the press at a pre-fight conference when a fan decided to rush the stage in hopes of shaking Strickland’s hand.

The unidentified individual was detained and removed from the stage within seconds of making his way on camera, but as seen in the above video embeds, it was all relatively harmless. Even UFC CEO Dana White couldn’t help, but smile as Strickland almost appeared to be flattered by the fan’s gesture.

Strickland dubbed the fan a ‘savage’ as he was carted away by security staff.

The 185-pound king received an overwhelmingly positive response from the Canadian crowd, particularly after he echoed many of their concerns regarding the current state of Canada’s government and contentious Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Watch the full UFC 297 press conference below:

Dricus Du Plessis Eyes Future Title Clash with Alex Pereira Once He Takes Care of Business at Middleweight

Dricus Du PlessisDricus Du Plessis would be happy to step inside the Octagon with light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira after taking…

Dricus Du Plessis

Dricus Du Plessis would be happy to step inside the Octagon with light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira after taking care of a bit of business at middleweight.

Emanating from Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Du Plessis will step into the main event spotlight at UFC 297 determined to cut short the reign of reigning middleweight king Sean Strickland. Hours ahead of their highly anticipated title tilt, Du Plessis and Strickland made an appearance at a pre-fight press event on Thursday. Also in attendance was 205-pound champ Alex Pereira.

With Pereira’s presence looming large at the media scrum, reporters were curious to know if either Strickland or Du Plessis would be interested in challenging ‘Poatan’ should they come out on top on January 20.

Strickland, who already carries a first-round knockout loss to Pereira on his resume, was unusually quiet, but ‘Stillknocks’ happily chimed in.

“100% [I would challenge Pereira],” Du Plessis declared. “100% – after this I have a whole division to take care of before I start thinking of that… Whether it’s him, whether it’s someone else I don’t care. After this division, that’s what I’m after.”

Strickland was quick to retort, “Alex, after I put him away you can put him away next. Don’t worry, we got you Dricus.”

As of this writing, Sean Strickland is listed as a slight favorite to retain his title at UFC 297, sitting at a -115 on DraftKings. Du Plessis is a -105 at the moment with the anticipated line movement expected to make the fight essentially a pick’em by the time they make their walks to the Octagon on Saturday night.

Former UFC Title Challenger Reacts to Sean Strickland’s Latest Anti-LGBTQ Rant: ‘Maybe Don’t Give Him a Platform’

Sean StricklandSean Strickland has once again angered the LGBTQ+ community and its allies. On Saturday, January 20, Strickland is set…

Sean Strickland

Sean Strickland has once again angered the LGBTQ+ community and its allies.

On Saturday, January 20, Strickland is set to defend his 185-pound title for the first time since claiming the crown with a decisive unanimous decision victory over Israel Adesanya last year. Hoping to make Strickland’s first reign a short one is No. 2 ranked contender Dricus Du Plessis.

Ahead of their highly anticipated and all-too-personal clash in the UFC 297 headliner, Sean Strickland has been making the rounds, speaking to members of the press about the impending title tilt and pretty much anything else that pops into his head. During Wednesday’s media scrum in Toronto, one brave reporter decided to question Strickland on his past comments about the gay, lesbian, and transgender communities.

In December 2021, Strickland tweeted, “If I had a gay son I would think I failed as a man to create such weakness.” As the reporter attempted to read back additional posts, Strickland was quick to cut him off and deliver one of his signature diatribes.

“Ten years ago, to be trans was a mental f*cking illness,” Strickland said. “And now, all of a sudden, people like you have f*cking weaseled your way in the world. You are an infection. You are the definition of weakness. Everything that is wrong with the world is because of f*cking you.”

Needless to say, Strickland’s comments didn’t go over well with many fighters and fans, including former UFC title challenger Megan Anderson who offered her take on the middleweight champ’s latest rant.

“I understand from a journalist POV asking these types of qns [questions] and not shying away from thesr topics, etc,” Anderson wrote on X. “However, when you have someone like Sean who is confrontational, at times volatile, and has very polarizing beliefs, maybe don’t give him a platform asking these qns [shrug emoji].”

Over the last year, Strickland has established himself as one of mixed martial arts’ most polarizing figures. Moving forward, he will look to carve out a more substantial legacy for himself as one of the middleweight division’s greatest champions.

That journey begins against a South African knockout artist riding an impressive eight-fight win streak.

UFC 297’s Sean Strickland Slams Colby Covington’s ‘Cringeworthy’ Character in Heated Rant: ‘He’s Just Fraudulent’

Sean Strickland and Colby CovingtonUFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland is not a fan of Colby Covington’s manufactured persona. Last month, Covington kickstarted a…

Sean Strickland and Colby Covington

UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland is not a fan of Colby Covington’s manufactured persona.

Last month, Covington kickstarted a feud with Strickland, saying that he “would love to slap around” the 185-pound titleholder and labeled him a “pathetic excuse of a human being.”

We’ll just tip-toe around the irony in that statement.

Strickland and Covington are similar in that they are both proud Americans, staunch conservatives, and love to exercise their right to free speech. However, there is one glaring difference that seems to separate them. That being the fact that Covington’s MAGA-loving character is exactly that — a character — while Strickland prides himself on being 100 percent authentic, for better or for worse.

“Yeah, unlike Colby Covington, the fraudulent man himself,” Strickland told ESPN. “He’s just fraudulent. I think to be a UFC fighter, it is a sense of entertainment, WWE. But you want to base your character on authenticity and then you have somebody like Colby, who is a fictional persona that he’s created when he’s not trying to fall on Trump’s d*ck.”

“It is the most cringeworthy sh*t,” Strickland continued. “It’s so f*cked that Trump left the arena while he was giving his speech. It’s like watching the ugly girl get rejected at a party. You feel bad for the guy at this point. Don’t worry, Colby, he knows your name” (h/t MMA Mania).

Strickland is set to defend his middleweight title for the first time since claiming the crown with a dominant showing against two-time titleholder Israel Adesanya in September. ‘Tarzan’ will square off with No. 2 ranked contender Dricus Du Plessis in Saturday’s UFC 297 headliner at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

Watch the full interview below: