"You drop a couple N-bombs" - Sean Strickland takes offense at Israel Adesanya's title shot, makes prediction for UFC 305
While Dricus du Plessis prepares to defend his middleweight title against Israel Adesanya at UFC 305, Sean Strickland, who has fought both men, has voiced his displeasure with Adesanya receiving the title shot.
The highly anticipated middleweight championship clash pits the reigning champion, du Plessis, against the No.2-ranked contender, Adesanya, on Aug. 17 in Perth, Australia. The bout has been a long time coming, having fallen through twice previously due to du Plessis' injuries.
However, Strickland, who lost a split decision to Du Plessis at UFC 297, believes Adesanya's path to a title shot is undeserved. In a recent interview with James Lynch for Sportskeeda MMA, 'Tarzan' said:
“It’s a really weird f**king thing. You go on stage, you drop a couple N-bombs, challenge a guy to a racist chicken and you get a title fight. I didn’t know that how it works man. Don’t worry, I’lll get up there and we’ll play racist chicken Izzy, I got you.”
He is referring to Adesanya's controversial use of racial slurs during a confrontation with du Plessis.
Despite his frustration with Adesanya's title opportunity, Strickland offered a prediction for the upcoming fight. Acknowledging his competitive fight with du Plessis, the American said:
“It’s kind a hard, cause you know, up until I got cut I mean I wasn’t getting hit by him, you know, not being able to see of my fucking eyes is hard, real hard. So, don’t know man, I think it will be a close fight. But either way that belt is coming back to Vegas.”
Check out Sean Strickland's comments below (2:40):
Sean Strickland rejects Robert Whittaker bout, demands a title shot next
Sean Strickland, the UFC's number one ranked middleweight contender, has surprisingly rejected the idea of facing Robert Whittaker in a potential title eliminator bout.
Fresh off a victory over Paulo Costa that solidified his top-contender status, Strickland believes he deserves a direct shot at the middleweight title currently held by Dricus Du Plessis. This comes after calls emerged for a Strickland vs. Whittaker matchup following Whittaker's dominant first-round knockout win over Ikram Aliskerov.
However, Strickland dismissed Whittaker as a worthy opponent, pointing to Whittaker's recent losses to Adesanya and Du Plessis. Strickland maintains that he was unfairly defeated by Du Plessis at UFC 297 and believes his past victories over Adesanya warrant an immediate title shot.
In a recent interview, Strickland left no room for negotiation:
"Ain't happening. I'll say no, Whittaker, he doesn't deserve it. I'm next in line, I defended my title shot, I'm the number one contender, it ain't happening. He lost [inaudible] pretty unanimously. I beat [Adesanya], I beat Dricus. I got f**ked in Canada. It ain't happening. Ain't f**king happening... If it ain't for gold, I ain't doing it."
Check out Sean Strickland's interview below (1:30):