Sean Strickland will have his rematch against Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 312 (Photo: Reproduction/Instagram)
Strickland will have the chance to reclaim the middleweight title (up to 83,9 kg) at UFC 312 , when he faces Dricus du Plessis in a rematch. In their first encounter, the South African won by split decision and dethroned the American. Despite the fight being balanced and contested until the last second of the last round, Chael Sonnen believes that Strickland wasn't really interested in keeping the world title.
In a recent episode of 'Good Guy/Bad Guy' with Daniel Cormier , Sonnen stated that, in his view, Strickland may have lost every round in his fight against Dricus du Plessis , despite it being a close contest. The former fighter emphasized that the challenger needs to study the champion better, create a new strategy, and take the rematch more seriously.
See too
“To be honest, I’m not sure Sean didn’t lose all five rounds on my scorecards. It was a very close fight, but in the end, if you have to score it 10-9, maybe I gave it all to Dricus. The only reason I say that is I don’t want Sean to just believe what he thinks. I want him to study this guy, have a different game plan and take Dricus seriously,” Sonnen said.
Chael Sonnen suggested that Sean Strickland , while champion, didn't seem to care much about the title. However, after losing the belt, he appears to be more motivated and emotionally involved. The former rival of Anderson Silva believes that the American will fight better trying to regain the title than when he was defending it.
“I believe that when he was world champion, Sean Strickland didn’t care, or at least that’s what he showed. But the moment he lost the belt, he started to care too much. And I believe Sean will fight better trying to recover something than trying to defend it. That’s my opinion, but this is the right fight to make,” concluded the former fighter.
After losing the middleweight title to Dricus du Plessis , Sean Strickland returned to the octagon at UFC 302 , where he defeated Paulo Borrachinha and secured the top spot in the division's rankings, as well as his highly anticipated rematch. The South African, in turn, defended his belt at UFC 305 against Israel Adesanya.
UFC Tampa coverage sponsored by BK8
Bigger and More Reliable, BK8 is the official sponsor of UFC Tampa coverage . Official partner of Premier League clubs like Burnley and Aston Villa. BK8 is a sports betting platform that offers a welcome bonus of 100% up to R$500 and a risk-free first bet.
Visit the website , check the terms and conditions, make your first deposit using PIX , and take advantage of the risk-free betting promotion.
Johnny Walker opens up about his heavyweight debut at UFC 332.
You need to log in to comment.