Video – Sean Strickland’s immediate backstage reaction to UFC 297 title loss: ‘Welcome to fighting’
Sean Strickland’s middleweight title reign came to an end a mere four months after it began.
Following his stunning upset of two-time champion Israel Adesanya in September, Strickland was primed to score his first successful defense against South African finisher Dricus Du Plessis. And in the eyes of many, he did exactly that. However, two of the three judges overseeing the bout favored DDP, handing him the victory and the title by a razor-thin margin.
Strickland had little to say in the immediate aftermath, but the outspoken fan favorite recently shared a video on YouTube that documented his response to the loss backstage.
“Once that eye opened up, man, I just couldn’t see sh*t,” Strickland said after returning to the locker room with his team. “Welcome to fighting. I feel like Chris Curtis. I’m going to start f*cking calling myself Chris Curtis.”
Strickland sustained a nasty cut over his left eye, one that he later attributed to a headbutt in the later rounds of the 25-minute affair. On X, Strickland shared a clip of the incident which offered a look at some compelling evidence along with the subsequent damage it resulted in.
With the accidental clash of heads apparent and everyone seemingly split on who should have left Canada with the title, including UFC CEO Dana White who scored it in favor of Strickland, there is a very strong case to be made for an immediate rematch between the two. Unfortunately, that appears to be on the back burner as the promotion is looking to book a clash with either Israel Adesnaya or the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev.
All things considered, do you believe Sean Strickland is entitled to a rematch?
