Sean Strickland reveals he punched Australian fan ahead of UFC 293 title fight: ‘I’ve already committed an assault’
Travelling to Australia this week ahead of his premier championship challenge under the banner of the UFC this weekend, surging middleweight contender, Sean Strickland has revealed he was already involved in an altercation with an overzealous fan of defending champion, Israel Adesanya.
Strickland, the current number four ranked middleweight contender, enters his championship tangle against City Kickboxing staple, Adesanya at UFC 293 this weekend off the back of a stunning second round TKO win over Abusupiyan Magomedov back in July of this year.
The Covina native added the German resident to a prior January decision win over French prospect, Nassourdine Imavov – in an impromptu light heavyweight matchup.
Sean Strickland reveals altercation with fan on Bondi beach ahead of UFC 293
And travelling ‘Down Under’ for his championship foray with Adesanya, Strickland who remarked his confusion with the culture in the Oceanic country, also revealed he has committed a self-confessed assault on a fan of Adesanya, not long into his stay in Sydney.
“Initially, I thought the guy was coming up for a photo,” Sean Strickland told Fox Sports. “‘Izzy (Israel Adesanya) is gonna f*ck you up.’ Boom, [punched him] right in the guts.”
“I’d only been in Australia a day and already I’d committed an assault,” Sean Strickland explained. “If you wanna come up to me and run your f*cking mouth, I’ll smack you like I smack anybody else. Uppercut to his stomach. Then I walked away. But if I see the guy again, man, no problems… I thank him for not pressing charges.”
As for Adesanya, Strickland will come as the Nigerian-Kiwi’s first attempted title defense of the middleweight title as part of his second title reign, having reclaimed the throne in a thunderous second round KO win over arch-rival and common-foe, Alex Pereira back in April at UFC 287.
