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UFC 297: Sean Strickland Addresses Potential Fight Against UFC Star Israel Adesanya

The UFC middleweight champion didn't mince words when discussing his old rival, Israel Adesanya.

Zain Bando

UFC 297: Sean Strickland Addresses Potential Fight Against UFC Star Israel Adesanya
UFC 297: Sean Strickland Addresses Potential Fight Against UFC Star Israel Adesanya /

Simply put, Sean Strickland was unapologetically himself at Thursday's UFC 297 pre-fight press conference.

From hyping up the crowd, to making his opponent Dricus Du Plessis shake hands in an agreement to "fight to the death," it had everything and more.

UFC 297: Dricus Du Plessis Explains Why He Lost Interest In Fighting Israel Adesanya

But its completion came when a reporter asked "Tarzan" about his old rival Israel Adesanya, and his prediction for Du Plessis to capture the belt by submission.

"Listen, listen," Strickland said. "Izzy, the f****** guy. The f***** cringe lord. The f***** punk plate himself. F*** Izzy. F*****, I could've took Izzy down and beat his ass on the ground, but I chose to stand with him like a man  What did he do the whole fight? Run away like a b****. Izzy, shut your f****** mouth."

Strickland filled in for an injured Du Plessis at UFC 293 in 2023, thoroughly dismantling "The Last Stylebender" to steal the title. Adesanya's return is currently unknown, although it is likely that he will be watching the UFC 297 main event with a key interest in mind.

The bout between Strickland and Du Plessis is Strickland's first middleweight title defense. Before Adesanya lost to Strickland, the ex-middleweight king held the throne for the last four years, with his lone blemish coming against Alex Pereira in November 2022.

Octagon entrances should begin just before midnight ET Saturday, all contingent on time restraints with the women's bantamweight co-main event and three additional undercard fights across the pay-per-view.

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Zain Bando
ZAIN BANDO

Zain Bando is a writer for MMA Knockout, part of the Sports Illustrated/Minute Media umbrella. He has covered combat sports since 2019 for notable outlets BJPenn.com and FanSided MMA. He also co-hosts a podcast called "The MMA Outsiders," part of the Empty The Bench Podcast Network, which airs Tuesday nights at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT. A Chicago suburban native, Bando has been enthralled with MMA since 2006 and has been fortunate to attend some of the most high-profile events in the sport's history, both as a fan and media member, including UFC 264, Bellator 297 and Kayla Harrison's PFL MMA debut. He is excited to take the next step in his combat sports writing journey and looks forward to continuing his following of the fight game for years to come. Bando can be reached via email at zainbando99@gmail.com or by social media @zainbando99

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