"He's smart" - Joe Rogan points out difference in approach between Sean Strickland's sparring sessions with Sneako and Alex Pereira
Joe Rogan recently shared his thoughts on the Sean Strickland vs. Sneako sparring session and pointed out how 'Tarzan' didn't go as hard while training with Alex Pereira last year.
The former UFC middleweight champion recently agreed to a sparring session with the infamous 'Red Pill' streamer at the UFC Performance Institute. While fighters usually go easy while sparring with untrained combatants, Strickland seemingly wasn't given the memo and decided to brutally batter Sneako.
Strickland went harder than necessary and delivered several hard-hitting shots to Seanko's head despite onlookers throwing in the towel. After the influencer looked visibly shaken, UFC icon Forrest Griffin intervened to stop the sparring session.
Interestingly, Strickland didn't go this hard when he sparred with 'Poatan' to prepare for his fight against Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 last year. During that session, 'Tarzan' was calm and composed while maintaining a safe distance from the reigning light heavyweight champion's striking.
During a recent episode of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast with Chris Williamson (JRE #2104), the UFC commentator pointed out this difference in Strickland's attitude and said:
"He [Strickland] beat up that kid, who's a smaller-than-him streamer named Sneako, which is not a good look. He beat the sh*t out of him. I just don't know why he wanted to do that... When he was training with Alex Pereira, he was light sparring, 'cause he's smart. That guy's not Sneako, that guy already knocked you out. Pereira knocked him out in the first round."
Watch the full episode below:
When Israel Adesanya reacted to Sean Strickland sparring with Alex Pereira
Soon after footage of Sean Strickland sparring with Alex Pereira hit social media, Israel Adesanya shared his reaction and expressed his admiration for 'Tarzan' not going as hard as he usually does while training.
As mentioned, Strickland faced Adesanya in a 185-pound championship fight at UFC 293 last September. Strickland decided to train with the only fighter to have knocked out the Nigerian-born Kiwi to prepare for Adesanya. His efforts ultimately paid off, as Strickland dominated Adesanya over five rounds to win the title.
During the build-up, Adesanya shared his reaction to Strickland's sparring video on X and wrote:
"This was actually really nice to watch. It’s a different feel when you know what’ll happen if you went full Strickland. You never go full Strickland [face palm emoji]."