Sean Strickland and UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya do not like each other. At all. The middleweights do not hold back at taking shots at each other openly. Whether it be in press conferences, podcasts, or some recent interviews. This has made fans excited for a matchup between the Kiwi and the American.

Strickland seems to be using the old-but-effective tactic of insulting and calling out the champion to build hype for a title shot used by fighters like Chael Sonnen and Colby Covington. And it seems to have worked in Strickland’s case too, having earned him a shot at the UFC middleweight crown.

Sean Strickland vs. Israel Adesanya to headline UFC 293, pending official announcement by the UFC 

Israel Adesanya and Sean Strickland will most likely face each other for the middleweight title at UFC 293 next month. While Adesanya was originally supposed to face South African Dricus Du Plessis as the main event in Sydney. Adesanya and ‘Stillknocks’, too are involved in an ongoing feud after the Praetorian made comments that Adesanya interpreted as questioning his African-ness. But, Du Plessis has pulled out from UFC 293 in order to heal from a foot injury he suffered in his bout against Robert Whittaker at UFC 290.

This forced the UFC to look for an alternative, and they seem to have settled on #6 ranked middleweight Strickland. Adesanya and Strickland have been involved in a verbal back-and-forth over the past few months. In a podcast recently, Adesanya made tongue-in-cheek remarks about sexually harassing  Strickland twice “because I know he’s a b****, he’s not gonna do s***”. Strickland, for his own part, has mocked ‘Izzy’ for wearing nail paint, watching anime. He has also said that the Kiwi “probably j*rks off to cartoons”.

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The American is coming off two consecutive victories against Nassourdine Imavov and Abus Magomedov. The California native will be looking to take that momentum into the Adesanya fight. Although most people expect Adesanya to win, Strickland’s coach Eric Nicksick feels differently.

Sean Strickland coach feels ‘Tarzan’ poses “weird threat” to Israel Adesanya

Nicksick feels that Sean Strickland’s style poses a threat to Izzy, the likes of which the Yoruba has not faced. He pointed to Strickland’s endurance, relentless pressure, and aggressive approach as factors that might trouble ‘Izzy’. “Sean just … he poses a weird threat…You know, with his durability, his pressure, the way he gets in guys’ faces, the way that he likes to fight, he poses a different threat that I think than a lot of people have seen,” Nicksick said. The coach had also recently talked about Strickland’s Australian visa not being issued being the “biggest hurdle” in making the fight. But, it seems the American has been given the green-light for UFC 293. Tarzan’ has also been given the vote of confidence by Adesanya’s nemesis Alex Pereira, with whom the American has been training recently. The Brazilian feels that Strickland has the game to upset Adesanya.

The UFC world has been eagerly waiting for the Dricus Du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya bout after their shockingly hostile and expletive-ridden faceoff at UFC 290. Many are disappointed at probably having to wait until early 2024 to see the two in the cage. But, in terms of excitement and hype, the replacement comes close. As close as an Adesanya fight against someone not named Dricus Du Plessis could be.

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