Sean Strickland has not lost any confidence during his time away.
It has been over a year since fans last saw the former UFC middleweight champion in action, following his unsuccessful attempt to reclaim his title from Dricus du Plessis in Sydney.
Strickland was defeated by ‘Stillknocks’ for a second time at UFC 312, following the loss of his title to Du Plessis earlier in 2024. The rematch defeat has, for the time being, removed the 34-year-old from title contention.
A suspension followed an incident where he attacked another fighter while cornering a teammate at a regional event, delaying his return even further.
He will finally be back in the Octagon next weekend in Houston and believes that a win will put him in line for a favourable match-up against the current champion.
Sean Strickland backs himself to beat the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev
Strickland is gearing up to face Anthony Hernandez at UFC Houston, with both fighters looking to put themselves in line for a future shot at the unbeaten Khamzat Chimaev.
Chimaev made light work of Du Plessis at UFC 319, and there are not many giving the current crop of 185-pound contenders much hope against ‘Borz’.
Strickland, though, believes he is the man for the job.
He told ESPN: “That’d be a big fight. I think I’m probably the only one that could beat Chimaev.
“I honestly think ‘Fluffy’ is a better wrestler than Chimaev. Over five rounds, Fluffy is a better wrestler than Chimaev.
“It’s kind of weird what the UFC did with Chimaev. You brought a guy that fights once a year – the guy doesn’t need to fight. He’s best friends with a warlord.”
Sean Strickland’s former opponent doubts he will earn another title shot
One of Strickland’s former opponents does not believe he will get the opportunity to challenge Chimaev for his undefeated record and attempt to become a two-time middleweight champion, despite the 34-year-old American envisioning that exact scenario.
Speaking to Bloody Elbow, ex-UFC fighter Krzysztof Jotko predicted a tough night ahead for ‘Tarzan’ when he faces Anthony Hernandez in Houston.
“Hernandez is a really, really dangerous guy. He can wrestle and he has good submissions. He attacks submissions very fast.
“Strickland is a very good boxer, of course. He likes to fight in the stand-up, but I think he has a lot of miles, a lot of fights.
“In my opinion, Strickland’s gonna go a little bit down from his shape, I think so. Maybe I’m wrong but I think Strickland has his big fights behind him already,” Jotko concluded.
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