Sean Strickland believes Merab Dvalishvili could snatch Henry Cejudo's 'King of Cringe' title: "That ain't the way to get famous"
Sean Strickland has suggested that Merab Dvalishvili could dethrone the self-proclaimed 'King of Cringe' Henry Cejudo. Strickland drew attention to Dvalishvili's social media content, seemingly referencing the skits and other primarily comedic content that the bantamweight kingpin posts with professional models. 'Tarzan' believes Dvalishvili is mistaken if he feels that's how one gets famous.
Strickland, the former UFC middleweight champion, is considered one of the most outspoken fighters in MMA today. In recent years, the American has garnered a reputation for making polarizing socio-political assertions and general observations on combat sports topics and beyond.
Dvalishvili, the reigning UFC bantamweight champion, often posts skits with models and fellow influencers to his Instagram and other social media handles.
Strickland has now taken to X to address Dvalishvili and Cejudo's respective personas. He acknowledged that Dvalishvili's social media content may be his attempt to get famous, but it isn't the right way. He tweeted:
"Yall ever seen Merabs ig?! This man might beat Henry with being the king of cringe...Everytime I see him he has some OF h*e with him holding a camera......bro....why??!? That ain't the way to get famous my man lol...."
In response to an X user suggesting that Dvalishvili's success as an influencer helped him secure a UFC title shot and progress in his career, Strickland disagreed.
'Tarzan' alluded to Dvalishvili having long been the bantamweight No.1 contender and choosing not to compete for the belt because his friend Aljamain Sterling was the division's champion till Aug. 2023. Responding to the fan, Strickland tweeted:
"What?! He had been next in line for awhile.. he just wanted to wait out of respect for aljo.. These h*es didn't get him a title shot lmao....."
Sean Strickland praised Merab Dvalishvili after victory over Sean O'Malley
Merab Dvalishvili defeated longtime rival 'Sugar' Sean O'Malley via unanimous decision to become the new UFC bantamweight champion at UFC 306 (Sep. 2024). Sean Strickland, who's long been at loggerheads with O'Malley, subsequently took to his Instagram Stories and congratulated Dvalishvili.
Posting an image of 'The Machine' from UFC 306, Strickland wrote:
"@merab.dvalishvili I'm proud of you man. Well deserved"
Check out a screenshot of Strickland's post below:
Presently, Strickland is expected to face UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis in a title rematch next. UFC CEO Dana White recently confirmed the same once again. Dvalishvili is likely to defend his belt against Umar Nurmagomedov next.