Last weekend’s UFC Houston continues to dominate headlines, but the attention has shifted away from the action inside the Octagon. Instead, Sean Strickland put himself at the center of the story with a controversial post-fight press conference that quickly overshadowed the entire card. During his outburst, Strickland hurled multiple abusive slurs at coach Jim West and rival Khamzat Chimaev, which reportedly led broadcasters to cut his microphone mid-speech.

As a result, the sudden decision immediately sparked intense debate online, with fans arguing over whether the UFC made the right call? Now, several days later, Sean Strickland’s head coach broke his silence and stepped forward to address the controversy.

“I wasn’t in there,” Eric Nicksick told Submission Radio. “I was in the locker room… So, I didn’t hear about it until later, and then Oscar [Willis] actually flew next to me on the flight home, so he was kind of telling me some of that stuff, but I didn’t catch any of it; I wasn’t even around for any of that stuff.”

“It’s about time, right? Somebody had to hit the ‘wrap it up button’ on him… good times.”

Nicksick knows exactly how far his fighter can go once he starts talking, a reality that became evident last year when the two of them got into a heated exchange on social media, though the situation eventually cooled down. Meanwhile, UFC CEO Dana White came to Strickland’s defense, pointing the finger at the media for pushing him to the point where he loses control of his words.

News served to you like never before!

Prefer us on Google, To get latest news on feed

Prefer Us on Google

However, this time, UFC staff actively intervened and shut off the microphone, a move that split the MMA community. Consequently, some fans criticized the promotion for going “soft” over offensive language. For his part, Sean Strickland directly blamed Paramount for cutting his mic, and former champion Sean O’Malley supported that theory.

Sean O’Malley shares his take on the UFC muting Sean Strickland

Earlier this year, Dana White and Co. ended their “head-butting” relationship with ESPN and launched a new seven-year, $7.7 billion partnership with Paramount. As part of the deal, the UFC shifted all events to streaming on Paramount+, with some also airing on CBS, effectively ending its traditional pay-per-view model. Consequently, many, including Sean O’Malley, see this move as the reason why the UFC, which usually champions “free speech,” has recently gone soft.

“He did get cut off on the post-fight interview. It’s crazy,” Sean O’Malley said on his YouTube channel. “I mean, they’re on Paramount. This is not a pay-per-view. On pay-per-views, we were able to say f—, say whatever we want. Pay-per-view, post-fight, whatever…. This is on Paramount Plus. Like, this is a fight night. Even if it was a numbered event, we’re still on Paramount.”

O’Malley’s comments make sense because Paramount now controls UFC broadcasting and manages the messaging. In other words, the promotion now focuses on controlling trash talk, unlike the last time Sean Strickland fought under ESPN PPV.

The UFC cannot promote events the way it used to, which creates marketing challenges, especially when it comes to bringing back stars like Conor McGregor and letting them loose on the mic. So, if fighters cross the line with trash talk, how will Dana White and Co. handle it?

What’s your take? Drop your opinion below.