“The Disrespect Is Crazy”- Fans Bash the UFC and Dana White After Sean Strickland UFC 294 News Is Revealed

UFC 294 is set to be one of the most anticipated fight cards of this year. Originally, middleweight phenom Khamzat Chimaev was set to face Paulo Costa. A feud between the two had been brewing for months. Unfortunately, Costa suffered an injury and the UFC had to put together a short notice fight. Former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman stepped in on short notice to save the event, which will take place at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on October 21, 2023. However, as per a report from ESPN, Usman was not the first person the UFC called, but it was the current middleweight champion Sean Strickland. The news shocked the MMA fans and they were quick with their reactions bashing both the UFC and Dana White.

The stakes are high for both Usman and Chimaev in this fight. UFC President Dana White has confirmed on the Pat McAfee Show that the winner of this fight will go on to get a title shot. With that in mind, let’s take a closer look at how the events unfolded. 

Sean Strickland gets the support of the fans against Dana White and the UFC 

According to Marc Raimondi of ESPN, the UFC brass reached out to Sean Strickland to get him to step in on short notice. However, this was less than a month after he beat Israel Adesanya to win the middleweight crown at UFC 293 on September 9, 2023. 

The fact that the UFC reached out to Sean Strickland to step in on short notice did not sit well with fans. Here’s what fans had to say on the matter while reacting on a Tweet from another account. 

One fan said, “Offering a champion a short notice fight is crazy lol.”

Another fan added, “Shows how they really dont want Sean as champ.”

“Dana salty Strickland beat Izzy. They trying to get him out of there”- commented another fan.

Showing his displeasure a fan commented, “The disrespect to give a short notice fight to the champion of the division. Shame on you guys @ufc and @danawhite.”

Lastly, yet another fan said, “The disrespect is crazy.”

After Strickland refused to fight the UAE fighter, Kamaru Usman was named as a replacement for Costa. Usman accepted to step inside the octagon for the fight with just 9-days short notice period.

How did the UFC land on Kamaru Usman to take the fight?

As mentioned in Marc Raimondi’s report, after Paulo Costa pulled out, it is understood that the UFC had finalized Jared Cannonier as the replacement on October 9th. However, he sustained an injury and the fight was called off the very next day. Which put the UFC back on square one. Dominance MMA’s Ali Abldelaziz then offered Roman Dolidze as a replacement fighter, which the UFC considered. 

At this point, Hunter Campbell remembered something Kamaru Usman told him during a check-in meeting after he lost his title. ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ said that Chimaev was the fight he wanted the most. But it did not make sense given Chimaev was a middleweight. Also, the fact that Israel Adesanya was the champion before UFC 293 and Usman and Adesanya would never fight each other. With this in mind, Campbell approached Usman for the fight and he said yes immediately. It will be interesting to see if the gamble works out for the former welterweight champion.

It will be interesting to see if the gamble works out for the former welterweight champion. Even though UFC 294 card went through many changes, the replacements have made the card exciting for the fans. The co-main event will likely have the fans at the edge of their seats and they can expect a close encounter between the two UFC fighters.