Following his title loss to Dricus du Plessis, Sean Strickland bounced back against Paulo Costa, winning via decision at UFC 302. Though the bout was a snoozer for many, the win got ‘Tarzan’ back in the hunt for his lost title. However, Robert ‘The Reaper’ Whittaker is hot on his tail as he made a statement in Riyadh, dispatching unranked contender Ikram Aliskerov with ease. But, will the two meet in the octagon and settle their scores? Sadly, no!
Unfortunately, Strickland isn’t down to fight Whittaker. The outspoken American has his eye set on a title shot and is only interested in facing the winner of the Israel Adesanya vs Dricus du Plessis fight at UFC 305. In an exclusive to MMA Crazy, ‘Tarzan’ even explained why he did not want Whittaker as an opponent, saying,
“It ain’t happening, I’ll say no. Whittaker he don’t deserve it. I’m next in line…I’m the #1 contender…The thing about being a backup dude, backup is kind of a bullsh*t position, they could have anybody as a backup, it don’t f**king matter, I mean backup is a bullish*t position, it don’t matter, I’ll wait.”
Since, all Strickland wants is his lost crown, taking on #3 ranked Robert Whittaker does not fit into his plans. In fact, the 33-year-old insisted that he is the one who deserves a title rematch after UFC 305 since he has already defeated Izzy and gave Dricus a run for his money. On the other hand, Whittaker lost twice to Adesanya and got TKOed by du Plessis.
Interestingly, Strickland also mentioned the possibility of being a backup fighter for the Izzy vs du Plessis fight, and he isn’t budging from that either since he has eyes only for the one with the belt.
In the meantime, undefeated welterweight prospect, Ian Garry, refused to acknowledge ‘Tarzan’ despite the American’s best attempts to rile him up.
Ian Garry chooses to snub Tarzan despite personal attacks
Despite a horde of personal attacks, specifically on his wife, Ian Garry is choosing peace over conflict against the former middleweight champion, Sean Strickland. But why? Well, according to the Irishman, Strickland is “mentally ill” and there’s no point in fighting him! In a recent exclusive to AgFight, Ian Garry revealed his thoughts, hitting back at Strickland, saying,
“There’s nothing that needs to be discussed when it comes to Sean Strickland. We need to leave him be, just let him go. I think he’s mentally unwell and having a breakdown publicly. We need to just leave him be.”
While the outspoken American did his best to provoke the 26-year-old, Garry didn’t pay much heed to it and is currently focused on his chase for the welterweight gold.
