"Every childhood memory you have will come back" - Dricus Du Plessis' 'abusive father' jibe infuriates Sean Strickland during UFC press conference
The UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland is widely considered one of the most outspoken fighters in the UFC. He isn't known for filtering his opinions regardless of who gets offended. However, Dricus Du Plessis recently flipped the script for Strickland and managed to get under the 32-year-old Californian's skin.
'Tarzan' won the UFC middleweight championship after pulling off an incredibly upset victory over Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 in September. Despite being the underdog, the 32-year-old dominated the Nigerian-born Kiwi over five rounds toward a unanimous decision win.
The UFC middleweight champion is now set to defend his title against Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 297 in January at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. Ahead of their highly anticipated fight, the two middleweights participated in the UFC's seasonal press conference event and engaged in a fiery back-and-forth exchange.
During one segment of the presser, he made some unsavory jokes about Du Plessis' relationship with his coach. The South African fighter fired back by reminding 'Tarzan' of his tumultuous relationship with his father and said:
"Bro, why are you so angry? You think your dad beat the sh*t out of you? Your dad doesn't have sh*t on me. I'm going to show you what it's like to get beaten. Every childhood memory you have is going to come back."
After 'Stillknocks' expanded on his statements further, Sean Strickland appeared bothered and fired back at his next opponent. He said:
"I will take your f**king soul, you understand me? You f**king pu**y... Yeah, you did hit a nerve, you f**king bi**h."
Watch Sean Strickland's interaction with Dricus Du Plessis here, via @Bendaman2001 on X.
Sean Strickland slams Colby Covington over comments about Leon Edwards' late father
Sean Strickland is not a fan of Colby Covington, and the UFC middleweight champion recently slammed 'Chaos' for his unsavory comments about welterweight champion Leon Edwards' deceased father.
'Rocky' is set to defend his 170-pound title against 'Donald Trump's favorite fighter' at UFC 296 this weekend at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Ahead of their bout, the two almost got into an altercation at the pre-fight presser after 'Chaos' insulted the Englishman's father. The Brit reacted by throwing a water bottle at the Oregon-born fighter, and the two had to be held apart by official security.
The UFC middleweight champion didn't like what Colby Covington said about Leon Edwards' father and brutally slammed 'Chaos' at the UFC seasonal press conference. He said:
"Him making fun of Leon's dad. That is the biggest f***ing c**t move you can do. That is the biggest c*nt move you do... Colby is a fake f***ing p**sy, and if he was standing here right next to me, the only f***ing thing he would do is call 911 because he is the definition of a f***ing b**ch."