Sean Strickland Jason Silva-USA TODAY Sports

Middleweight champ says UFC didn’t want to give Sean Strickland title fight

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated 8/18/23

In Sean Strickland’s mind, he was logically the next in line for a shot at UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.

But the 34-year-old Nigerian is telling a different story—one that suggests Strickland’s brash and sometimes offensive personality actually worked against him, prompting Adesanya to advocate for Strickland to get his title shot.

“He’s an idiot, and the UFC don’t want him embarrassing the company,” Adesanya said, via MMA Fighting. “But yeah, that’s all I’ll say about that. He should thank me. He should really thank me for actually making him get the fight. [Coach Eugene Bareman] knows what happened behind the scenes. I pushed for it, and I’m glad the UFC trusted me to listen to me.”

“He didn’t wanna push through his injury. So, it doesn’t matter to me. That’s something to do with him and his team, and he has to go back and fight someone else.”

Israel Adesanya’s coach Eugene Bareman on Dricus Du Plessis Title shot#UFC #UFC293 #MMA pic.twitter.com/0hBmthf9MR
— MMA UNCENSORED (@MMAUNCENSORED1) August 10, 2023

Adesanya (24-2) was originally scheduled to defend his 185-pound belt against Dricus du Plessis (20-2), who is riding an eight-fight win streak, but the UFC settled on Strickland as a Plan B after the du Plessis fight was scrapped due to an injury he suffered in his TKO win over former champion Robert Whittaker on July 8.

Strickland (27-5) is highly controversial, to say the least. He’s developed an unsavory reputation for using foul language and making insensitive remarks about delicate topics including rape, gender equality, racial insensitivity and gun control.

Another day, another insane Sean Strickland moment pic.twitter.com/gNzleWWygH
— Ben Davis (@BenTheBaneDavis) August 11, 2023

But for as outspoken as he is outside of the Octagon, Strickland does his share of trash-talking inside it as well—something Adesanya doesn’t seem too keen on letting him get away with.

"If he's talking to me, he's going to get his jaw broken," Adesanya said on his YouTube channel on Monday. "He's going to get his jaw broken because when you're talking you're not focused on the task at hand."

Most sportsbooks are heavily favoring Adesanya to retain his belt. He’s currently listed as a -490 favorite, per DraftKings.

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