Fans sometimes criticize Sean Strickland for a less-than-entertaining approach to his fights after putting on viral wars in sparring.
Former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland treats fans to chess matches contained in the Octagon. Despite pre-fight guarantees of all-out wars contained in the cage, Strickland often opts for passive approaches against his opponents, leading to harsh criticism of his style.
Strickland looks for revenge against reigning UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis at UFC 312. His attempt at getting du Plessis to comply with a pre-fight pact was focused on limiting grappling exchanges once they meet within the Octagon.
While it stays to be seen if Strickland’s plea proves successful, he’s on the lookout for a possibly more entertaining fight than his first go-around with du Plessis. After Strickland’s most up-to-date win over Paulo Costa, fans and pundits criticized the previous UFC champ’s style as slow and tactical.
Strickland’s sparring sessions are sometimes within the headlines, as he spars almost every day contained in the gym during fight camps. Despite the brutal nature of a few of his spars, he often opts for a slower-paced bout in comparison with his wild gym battles.
Sean Strickland hits back at perception of his awkward, at times ‘boring’ style
During a recent interview with ESPN‘s Brett Okamoto, Strickland explained his at-times slow-paced style contained in the Octagon as in comparison with his infamous sparring wars.
“The difference is if you’re fighting world-class fighters… like we had Johnny Eblen out of Bellator here. You watch me and Johnny fight, it’s a f****ing chess match,” Strickland said. “World-class striking meets world-class striking. You’ll watch the head of any sport, and also you’re like why is it different? Because I’m fighting the best possible.
“So that you usher in anybody who is just not a top world champion, it’s easy. But you usher in an elite-level striker who has trained their entire life for this moment, and it’s a chess match…four-ounce gloves, with a cage, it’s harder to see. But there’s a reason that each time I lose a f***ing decision the guy’s face looks like he’s been hit by a truck, and all I even have is a black eye or a scratch.”
An example of Strickland’s methodical approach is his upset win over Israel Adesanya at UFC 293. After dropping Adesanya and nearly ending him in the primary round, Strickland took a conservative approach en path to a unanimous decision victory over the ultimate 4 rounds.
Sean Strickland ramped up bad blood with Khamzat Chimaev ahead of potential title win
While Strickland’s gameplan for the du Plessis rematch is uncertain, his next potential opponent with a win at UFC 312 is almost set in stone. Khamzat Chimaev will likely get the Strickland/du Plessis 2 winner after ending Robert Whittaker at UFC 308.
Strickland warned Chimaev a couple of potential future fight in recent days, declaring he’d ‘have his way’ with the undefeated middleweight contained in the cage. Strickland’s head coach recently commented on their brewing rivalry by guessing that the 2 middleweights are likely messaging one another.
Du Plessis most recently defended the title against Adesanya at UFC 305 last 12 months, after narrowly beating Strickland for the belt at UFC 297. Strickland believes du Plessis’s striking is ‘lightyears’ behind him, which he’ll have the prospect to prove at UFC 312.
Whether or not the UFC 312 fundamental event shall be slow-paced stays to be seen. But Strickland’s recent remarks make a compelling argument in regards to the importance of frequent, hard-nosed sparring.
