Sean Strickland posted a video of him backstage after his UFC 297 fight.
The former middleweight champion, Sean Strickland, released a video on his YouTube channel. The video shows a small glimpse of his behind-the-scenes of fight week. We see Strickland and his buddy Cris Curtis cut weight and train a little, which leads up to the official weigh-ins and then the ceremonial weigh-ins. The video continues with fans greeting him outside the hotel, his warm-up inside the locker room, and watching Curits’ fight. The light heavyweight champion, Alex Pereira, made an appearance as he later agreed to be in his corner and it seemed Strickland was very gracious about it.
What could be the most interesting part of this vlog was the immediate reaction of Strickland and his team walking back into the locker room after the fight. The main event of UFC 297 ended in a split decision loss for Strickland as Dricus Du Plessis scored 48-47 on two of the judges score cards while one judge gave a 48-47 to the former champ. Upon Sean Strickland walking back into the locker room, he was greeted with applause by his team. You can see a cut open up on top of his left eye which he blamed for losing a round to Du Plessis.
“Once that eye opened up, man, I just couldn’t see s*** […] Welcome to fighting. I feel like Chris Curtis. I’m going to start f****** calling myself Chris Curtis.” Strickland said sitting down and reflecting on the fight. “The only reason why you [Dricus Du Plessis] took a round from me is because I couldn’t see. I won that fight, the world knows I won that fight. The belt they gave you will never make you a champion, enjoy.”
Regardless of what you think about Strickland, probably the most humanizing and intimate we’ve ever seen him. Shows how much this fight meant to him and how close the result is. As we know, Strickland says what he thinks and isn’t too shy about it. Even refer to that in his vlog that they gave him a mic. This gives you a different glimpse into the fighter and human and could be more inviting to some fans.
What’s next for Sean Strickland and Du Plessis
With the middleweight belt changing hands for the fourth time in the last 2 years, by all means, it’s time to wonder what’s next.
Back at UFC 281, Alex Pereira defeated the long reign of Israel Adesanya to become the new middleweight champion. However, that reign didn’t last long. Only at UFC 287, Israel Adesanya knocked out Pereira in the second round to regain the crown and the belt. It was also the first time in the middleweight division that someone became a two-time champion. Afterward, at UFC 293, The Last Style Bender lost the belt to Sean Strickland on relatively short notice after Dricus Du Plessis wasn’t ready. Strickland put on a masterclass and caused one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. A few months later, at UFC 297 this past Saturday, it was Strickland’s turn to defend the title. As mentioned above, now healed and fully ready, Du Plessis is now the king of the division.
Four title fights in the middleweight division, four changes of the champions. Now that Dricus Du Plessis is the champion, the question is who will be his next challenger. In the post-fight press conference, Dana White didn’t rule out a rematch with Sean Strickland seeing as the fight was so close. At UFC 298, the co-main will feature Robert Whittaker and Paolo Costa. Perhaps the winner of this fight could be granted as the next challenger. Lastly, another challenger could be none other than the former middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya. At this instant, there is a storyline brewing between the two. In Du Plessis’s win over Whittaker, Adesanya walked into the octagon and both men had an exchange of words. Also, Adesanya posted a video of them training together a long time ago. As well, they both originate from Africa.
Nothing short of challenges!
Quotes are taken from Sean Strickland’s YouTube page.
How did you score Strickland versus Du Plessis? Who would you like to see challenge for the belt next? Let us know in the comments below.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
