Who has Sean Strickland lost to?

Sean Strickland is an American MMA fighter who is a former UFC middleweight champion. He is nicknamed “Tarzan” and fights in the middleweight division at the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

Born in Anaheim, California, United States, Sean Strickland had an abusive father and a neo-Nazi grandfather. Initially, he was influenced by them and became a neo-Nazi himself. However, after getting thrown out of school and admitting himself to martial arts, he changed himself. He claims that martial arts saved him from a dark life. He came to the UFC at UFC 171: Hendricks vs. Lawler on March 15, 2014, and faced Robert McDaniel. He defeated McDaniel with a submission through a rear naked choke in 4 minutes, 33 seconds of Round 1. He has won Performance of the Night twice so far in the UFC. Prior to the UFC, Sean Strickland competed at King of the Cage (KOTC), where he was a former 1-time KOTC middleweight Champion. As of February 3, 2025, Strickland holds an MMA record of 29 wins (11 by knockout, 4 by submission, and 14 by decision) and has lost 6 fights (2 by knockout and 4 by submission). The California native became the UFC middleweight champion by defeating Israel Adesanya at UFC 293: Adesanya vs. Strickland on September 10, 2023, via unanimous decision.

How many losses does Sean Strickland have?

Sean Strickland presently has six losses in his MMA career. All these six losses have come in the UFC. Before joining the UFC, Sean Strickland boasted an undefeated professional mixed martial arts record.

Here’s a look at the fighters who were successful in overcoming Sean Strickland in the octagon.

Sean Strickland vs Santiago Ponzinibbio

This fight took place at UFC Fight Night: Bigfoot vs. Mir on February 22, 2015, in Porto Alegre, Brazil. This was Strickland’s Welterweight debut fight. He came up short and ended up losing the fight to Ponzinibbio by unanimous decision in the 5th minute of Round 3. The loss was the first professional loss of Strickland's professional career.

Sean Strickland vs Kamaru Usman

Sean Strickland locked horns with Kamaru Usman at UFC 210: Cormier vs. Johnson 2 on April 8, 2017, in Buffalo, New York, United States. He was defeated by Usman by unanimous decision in 5 minutes of Round 3, thus handing Strickland his second professional loss.

Sean Strickland vs Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos

Sean Strickland took on Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos at UFC 224: Nunes vs. Pennington on May 12, 2018, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Strickland was beaten by Zaleski by KO/TKO with a kick in 3 minutes, 40 seconds of Round 1. The loss was Strickland's third professional loss.

Sean Strickland vs Alex Pereira

This fight took place at UFC 276: Adesanya vs. Cannonier on July 2, 2022, in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Strickland was defeated by Pereira via KO/TKO by punches in 2 minutes, 36 seconds of Round 1, handing him the fourth loss of his mixed martial arts career.

Sean Strickland vs Jared Cannonier

These two locked horns at UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland on December 17, 2022, in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Strickland lost the bout via unanimous decision, and Cannonier picked up the win. The defeat is Strickland's fifth loss in his professional career.

Sean Strickland vs Dricus du Plessis

Sean Strickland and Dricus du Plessis headlined the main event of UFC 297, where Strickland was the defending champion. The duo fought a closely contested fight through the five rounds. The fight was decided on judge's scorecard and du Plessis was adjudged the winner by split decision. Sean Strickland suffered the sixth loss of his career in the fight and also lost the UFC middleweight championship to Dricus du Plessis.

Also Read: Sean Strickland ufc record