The first UFC PPV event of 2024 is gearing up to start the year off with an absolute bang. With the main event headlining middleweight champion Sean Strickland and no. 2 ranked middleweight Dricus Du Plessis, the fight has already passed some of the past events in terms of the hype surrounding the affair. But is there a chance that the UFC had anticipated the hype?

Despite the UFC 297 having solid fights in the undercard, it doesn’t satisfy the appetite of most of the casual fans. So a card having the hottest MMA fighter at the moment headlining the event is not only a smart move by the UFC but also has the potential to boost the popularity of the fighters in his undercard. Here is what the UFC champ had to say about the UFC’s matchmaking.

Sean Strickland reveals the reason behind fighting at UFC 297

In a recent short podcast episode of “The Man Dance” with Chris Curtis, on Sean Strickland’s YouTube channel, the middleweight champ revealed Dana White and the UFC’s plan for having him fight at UFC 297.

Strickland started off the topic, revealing in his outspoken manner the awkward run-in he had with Mayra Bueno Silva in the press conference. He told Curtis, “She’s at the press conference. And she’s like flipping me off and I’m like God dude, is it my shirt, is because I said you should be in the kitchen like, I mean she’s making herself seem like flipping me off like fuck you like in a press conference and I’m like, Who is this chick?”

He then found out that Silva was fighting at the co-main event of the UFC 297 card, which also played a factor in why the UFC was keen on booking Strickland for the card.

He revealed the UFC’s persistence, saying, “Hunter and Dana called me and said, Hey, we got a woman Co-main event… I said no to the fight. I was like, “Guys come on dude. the holidays like I just f***ing fought like No”, and they were so insistent on it. And then I was like, well, who’s the co-main event? And I was like, oh, that’s why. Yeah, you just you gotta dog us. You’re trying to fit some social quota right now and you got to put me on there.”

Sometimes in the process of the UFC making successful events, some fighters get the short end of the stick. Nevertheless, that being said, Dana White and the UFC have successfully managed to turn the event into an absolute hype fest.

Fan crashes UFC 297 press conference

The UFC 297 press conference certainly lived up to all the hype that was surrounding it. Despite fans believing that a press conference for the upcoming event would be a calmer tone because of the two fighters burying the rivalry, it turned out to be the complete opposite. A part of the hype could be credited to a fan.

As Strickland was answering a question asked by the media, a fan managed to rush onto the stage to shake the hand of the middleweight champ. This made the entire stage blow up in excitement, and Strickland hyped up the fans even more by yelling at the microphone.

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Despite the UFC security coming into question, the hilarious interaction between Strickland and the fan managed to rile up the fans up and was met with another classic “Let’s F***ing go” roar by Strickland.

Given the success the lead-up to the fight had, how do you expect the fights at UFC 297 to play out? Let us know in the comments section below.

Also Read: Leaked Footage Reveals Security Failure as Fan Crashes Into Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis’ UFC 297 Press Conference