Sean Strickland believes caring about social justice is what's stopping American fighters from becoming UFC champions

Sean Strickland recently offered his stance on why athletes from Dagestan and other regions have surpassed Americans in the UFC. According to him, the descent can be attributed to fighters placing a strong emphasis on social justice and their civic responsibilities.

There has been a discernible spike in the number of foreign athletes, especially from Dagestan, competing at the highest level of MMA today. The UFC currently has only one American champion across 12 divisions in men's and women's categories.

Khabib Nurmagomedov's unprecedented legacy and rise to the top of the UFC lightweight division contributed to the region's emergence on the international stage. Today, Islam Makhachev and Khamzat Chimaev (born in Chechnya, Russia) are among the many athletes from the region who are currently dominating their sport.

In a recent episode of Straight Outta The Lair with Flex Lewis, Sean Strickland discussed how the new-age mentality of American athletes has diminished their chances of winning the UFC championship:

"You see f***ing guys these days, you look at Americans, how many f***ing Americans do you see kicking ass? You don't see many. You see a lot of these foreign motherf***ers that are like grinding to live in life.... And you have these f***ing Dagestanis that are wrestling f***ing bears. They don't give a f**k about social justice."

Strickland added that a skilled contemporary American competitor would do well in the competition if he cultivates an old-school fighter's mindset:

"Ten years ago, like the old dogs, I mean they were f****ng tough. They weren't great fighters. But they were tough and down. If you could take that mindset and you could put it back with the new generation's skill and mix it, you would see a lot of American champions."

Catch Sean Strickland's comments below:

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Sean Strickland explains why the "insecure person" inside him wants to spar with Francis Ngannou

Sean Strickland isn't afraid of a scrap, and his sparring session videos are a testament to that. 'Tarzan' has been spotted sparring with UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou several times in the past.

Sean Strickland regularly spars Francis Ngannou to experience “the fear of God” 😰

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The pair have engaged in several sparring sessions at the Xtreme Couture facility in Las Vegas. Strickland has gone as far as to claim that for the right amount, he will fight 'The Predator' even though he knows that he might get sparked unconscious.

Speaking about what pushed him to engage in a sparring session with one of the most feared athletes on the planet on the aforementioned podcast, Sean Strickland stated:

"I have this insecure b**ch in me that sees f***ng Francis walk in the room, like he f***ing scares me, and I'm like, 'I want to f***ng fight you man. Even if you knock me out, I want to fight you."

Catch Strickland's comments (15:00) below: