Sean Strickland has been no stranger to the world of trash-talk, especially when it comes to family-related subjects. His brash personality has led to several viral moments, and most recently, his exchange with Ian Garry about the Irish fighter’s marriage caught the attention of the MMA community. Despite their ongoing feud and Garry’s desire to face Strickland at middleweight in the future, Strickland admitted in an interview with TMZ that he wouldn’t hold a grudge if Garry were to take action against him for his words.
Talking about crossing lines in trash-talk, Strickland said, “If Ian Garry were to walk in this f***ing building right now and put a bullet in my head, I’m not mad at him. I’d probably respect him for doing it. So you try not to cross lines, you try not to talk about someone’s wife and kids, but it gets f***ing blurred.” Strickland also addressed Dricus du Plessis’ comments about his own childhood abuse, admitting that he started the confrontation. “I started it, I was calling him a f***ing f****t, calling his coaches f**s, I started it. I’m fully aware. It’s his life.”
Currently, Strickland is focusing on his first middleweight title defense against Dricus du Plessis at UFC 297. His victory over Israel Adesanya at UFC 293, which is considered one of the biggest upsets in title fight history, has prepared him for what he believes will be a tougher fight with du Plessis. In a pre-fight media appearance, Strickland discussed the upcoming match, saying, “I think it’s gonna be a harder fight than against [Israel Adesanya]. The thing about Dricus is he likes to fight. Is he the best? Probably not, but he goes in there and fights to win… I’m better than him. I’m a better grappler, I’m better at jiu-jitsu… What are his accolades?”
As Strickland goes into the fight as a slight favorite, fans await the outcome of his battle with du Plessis. Meanwhile, the future remains uncertain about whether or not his ongoing feuds outside the ring will be resolved.
