LAS VEGAS – As the spotlight on Sean Strickland increases in intensity, don’t expect his rather bold personality to lessen. If anything, Strickland says he plans on being even more outspoken as he moves up the ranks of the UFC’s middleweight division.
“I’m getting to a point where I can say sh*t and not get cut from the UFC,” Strickland told MMA Junkie at Wednesday’s media day at the UFC Apex. “Before, it’s like – oh man, I wasn’t good. Like, I couldn’t say sh*t because Dana White would be like, ‘Hey, go f*ck that white trash motherf*cker. Get him out of here.’ But now, since I’m growing a little bit more like, you know, fan base, people want to watch me fight, I can say a lot more offensive sh*t.”
Strickland certainly has a knack for that.
From openly admitting he’s contemplated the potential joy in killing an opponent – and perhaps even masturbating afterward – to his political leanings on any variety of topics, Strickland isn’t exactly everyone’s cup of tea.
Take, for instance, his explanation of why he frequently uses the term “gay,” and why it’s not a case of him being homophobic.
“I love gay men,” Strickland said. “Gay men are awesome. Lesbians, not so much. Lesbians hate me. Lesbians look at me like the guy that hurt them. I’m not the guy. I’m not your father. But gay men – gay men look at me like they want to f*ck me, and I respect that. You know, they compliment me. They slide in my DMs. I get some d*ck pics every now and then. I respect that sh*t, so I’m not homophobic.”
Strickland debuted in the UFC in 2014 and flew largely under the radar for the early part of his career. While behind the scenes, he was perhaps best known as a notoriously vicious training partner, many of the outspoken views he so freely wields now weren’t so openly expressed.
Strickland says it wasn’t an accident that he chose to remain mostly in the background.
“Every every coach or manager I ever had, like, ‘Sean, shut up,'” Strickland said. “‘They’re not going to sign you. Like, shut up. They don’t want that. They want an image.’ Now, I’m just going to be the white trash motherf*cker that I am. It’s nice.”
Strickland (24-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC) returns to the cage on Saturday when he faces fellow middleweight contender Jack Hermansson (22-6 MMA, 9-4 UFC) in the headlining bout of UFC Fight Night 200, which streams live on ESPN+ from the UFC Apex.
It’s a key matchup at 185 pounds, with Strickland currently sitting at No. 10 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie middleweight rankings and Hermansson just ahead at No. 8. It’s made even more important by the big matchups at next week’s UFC 271 event, where middleweight champ Israel Adesanya faces Robert Whittaker, and top contenders Derek Brunson and Jared Cannonier also collide.
Strickland knows there could be a real shuffle in the rankings after the dust has settled – and he welcomes a potential meeting with Adesanya for the belt. Strickland even made sure to fire a barb Adesanya’s way, mentioning previous speculation that the champ had developed swelling of his breast tissue, known as gynecomastia, that can accompany steroid use.
“I mean, ideally, Brunson beats Cannonier, and maybe if I do an impressive performance, I can, you know, dump and dodge and get a title shot,” Strickland said. “That’d be the perfect world, but at the end of the day, man, I’m just here to fight, make some money.
“But yeah, if I get a title shot, f*ck, let’s go. I’ll make fun of ‘Stylebender’s’ f*cking titty all day long.”
“UFC champion Sean Strickland” could prove a handful for the promotion. After all, it usually doesn’t take much provocation for the 30-year-old to reel off a few lines that might make existing and potential UFC sponsors – or even executives at the company’s broadcast partner, ESPN – a bit uneasy.
But Strickland insists he’s not going to dial it back should he wrap gold around his waist.
“No, it’s even better then because when you’re a champion, I could go full, like, Conor McGregor,” Strickland said. “I could go f*cking hit an old guy in a bar. F*cking throw a f*cking – trying to f*cking assault Khabib’s manager, Ali. You know, it’s f*cking even better, dude.”
Will Strickland’s abrasiveness eventually cost him career opportunities or life-changing paydays at some point in his career? It’s certainly possible. Strickland might just be the loosest cannon of all in a sport full of athletes who might not be considered the most well-adjusted humans on the planet.
Strickland seems aware of the potential backlash but doesn’t appear inclined to adjust his behavior to meet anyone else’s standards.
“I don’t know, dude – like, you know, I obviously think that I’m a f*cking prostitute for the UFC, so it’s like, I like that they give me money, but like, I’m not going to sit here, wear a suit, and think I’m anything other than just a dogfighter,” Strickland said. “I mean, at the end of the day, we’re locked in the cage. We punch each other in the face. We try to kill each other. We make somebody millions and we get paid fractions of that – which I’m not hating.
“I love my job. I love what I get paid, but come on now. We’re not doing anything special. You guys watch us. We’re like a f*cking circus. We’re like pornography. It’s something you like, you want to, f*cking, you know, you want to jerk off to, but you don’t necessarily want to do.”
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