"The way the Dutch man fights" - Sean Strickland throws shade at Dricus Du Plessis while responding to fan calling him out for "peddling BS"
Sean Strickland recently took a jibe at Dricus du Plessis while talking to a fan on social media. In January, Du Plessis dethroned Strickland of the UFC middleweight title. Seven months later, the reigning 185-pound king defended his throne for the first time with a fourth-round submission against all-time great Israel Adesanya.
Strickland bounced back from his loss against Du Plessis by securing a split decision against Paulo Costa. Dana White has since revealed the American fan favorite has earned a rematch against Du Plessis.
Earlier this week, Strickland called out Du Plessis for allegedly being inactive. Everything started when the former UFC middleweight world champion posted the following unrelated message on X:
"Instagram is one giant f**king commercial.... Famous people peddling BS with a blue checkmark. You can't be funny, you can't be authentic... Just one giant fucking pedophile ad straight to the fucking dome...@elonmusk save Instagram :/"
A fan responded with a picture of Strickland selling his merchandise on social media. The response was captioned:
"This you peddling BS?"
Strickland shut down the fan and snuck in an insult toward Du Plessis:
"I do a merch drop once a fight.. calm down..... one drop every 6 Months? The way the Dutch man fights f**k once a year"
Du Plessis has fought six times since his UFC debut in October 2020, leading to an undefeated 6-0 record. The South African native made two Octagon appearances in 2024, defeating Strickland and Adesanya for middleweight gold.
Sean Strickland and the landscape of the UFC middleweight division
Dana White announced that Dricus du Plessis' next title defense will be a rematch against Sean Strickland. Having said that, a date and venue have not been confirmed for the middleweight title showdown.
On Oct. 26, Khamzat Chimaev made a massive statement in the 185-pound division by securing a first-round submission against Robert Whittaker. White later teased Chimaev for potentially receiving a title shot in 2025.
Strickland has remained confident that he will fight Du Plessis next. White initially hoped to book the rematch in South Africa before revealing behind-the-scenes specifics have made the event difficult to finalize.