Sean Strickland’s coach picks between Dricus du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev as the tougher matchup: “Right now, you have to say that"
Dricus du Plessis and Sean Strickland are scheduled to clash in the main event of UFC 312 on Feb. 12 in Australia for the middleweight title. It will be a rematch of their UFC 297 bout, where 'Stillknocks' secured the belt via decision.
There are some fans who believe that Khamzat Chimaev should be fighting for the middleweight title instead of Strickland. 'Borz' recently defeated Robert Whittaker in sensational fashion at UFC 308, submitting the former champion in round one.
He handed 'The Reaper' the first submission loss of his UFC career, as well as a few broken teeth.
Despite calls for Chimaev to face Du Plessis, the promotion recently confirmed a middleweight title rematch as the UFC 312 headliner. Following the announcement, Strickland's head coach, Eric Nicksick, was interviewed on Submission Radio.
Nicksick was asked to pick between 'Borz' and 'Stillknocks' as a tougher matchup for Strickland, and he said:
"I mean, you would have to say [Dricus du Plessis] because he won, he beat us. Right now you have to say that [he's the tougher matchup] because that's the task at hand. I think Khamzat presents tons of different variables to his style that we're gonna have to look at how to break down once that challenge presents itself. But right now, DDP is the toughest challenge for us."
Catch Eric Nicksick's comments below (5:00):
Dricus du Plessis addresses fighting Sean Strickland instead of Khamzat Chimaev
Dricus du Plessis will clash with Sean Strickland at UFC 312 for the 185-pound title despite Strickland's initial lack of interest in returning to the shores of Australia.
Chimaev's UFC 308 performance against Whittaker also left the South African with his eyes firmly fixed on the fresh challenge of the undefeated Chechen. So much so that following the announcement that Du Plessis would face Strickland in a title rematch, 'Stillknocks' took to X to share the reason for him not fighting Chimaev.
The 30-year-old wrote:
"Just for clarification I preferred the Khamzat fight but the rematch is a fight most wanted before Khamzat vs. Whittaker. I'm not unhappy with the UFC's decision. Like I said, I'll fight the man fans think is the next best guy. He was promised the fight so Strickland it is."