Headliners Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis engaged in a brawl cageside during UFC 296 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada last weekend. The altercation occurred around Gilbert Burns’ wife and kids.
Durinho the UFC welterweight contender, accompanied by his wife Bruna Burns and their children Pedro and Joshua, was watching the event. They were there to support their close friend Alexandre Pantoja in his co-main event title defense against Brandon Royval. However, the broadcast shifted focus to the brawl between Strickland and Du Plessis.
The reigning middleweight champion, who is scheduled to defend his title in the main event of UFC 297 on January 20, got into a physical altercation with Du Plessis after a brief verbal exchange while Tony Ferguson vs Paddy Pimblett was going on. Before attacking Du Plessis, Strickland gestured to Bruna and her children to step aside. Recently, she revealed that Jamahal Hill pulled her out of the brawl as soon as he noticed it.
Sean Strickland UFC 296 Brawl
Dricus Du Plessis has given a detailed account of the physical fight that took place with Sean Strickland. Their upcoming main event on January 20th will give Du Plessis a chance to compete for the middleweight championship title against Strickland. However, the two fighters got into a physical altercation even before the bout, despite the short time left until the match.
The tension between the two fighters escalated earlier in the week during the UFC’s seasonal press conference when Du Plessis mentioned Strickland’s troubled childhood, which led to an angry Strickland and the subsequent physical altercation on Saturday night.
Sean Strickland is known for his unpredictable speech, and his intense reaction to Du Plessis surprised both the fans and Dricus Du Plessis. There is a lot of disagreement and debate surrounding the belief that Du Plesses may have crossed a line by bringing up Strickland’s past abuse during his upbringing.
Defending the Champion
Bruna Burns, has defended the middleweight champion against blame for the brawl. She tweeted the day after the event to claim that the fighter, Du Plessis, had taunted and beckoned Strickland to approach him just before the chaotic scene broke out and also mentioning that he was polite.
Dana White, the President of UFC, has publicly acknowledged that he was responsible for the seating arrangement that led to an altercation between Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis during the post-fight press conference of UFC 296. White expressed his frustration at the oversight and emphasized that preventing such incidents is his responsibility. Despite the heated exchange, White stated that no fines or reprimands would be issued.
As the MMA community grapples with the aftermath of the UFC 296 brawl, attention now turns to the upcoming Middleweight championship bout between Strickland and Du Plessis. The incident has injected an unexpected narrative into the storyline, promising an interesting encounter for fans in Toronto.
