'You're not that good'… Sean Strickland rants over Israel Adesanya's skillset following his title loss at UFC 305
21/08/2024 11:16
Despite having eight title wins in the UFC, six Performance of the Night bonuses, and likely a place in the Hall of Famer already secured, former champion Sean Strickland still believes that Israel Adesanya is 'not that good'.
Given both his intense rivalry with Israel Adesanya and his desire to reclaim the middleweight title from Dricus Du Plessis, it didn't take long for 'Tarzan' to start swinging following the main event of UFC 305 this past weekend.
Sean Strickland claims Adesanya is 'not that good' after UFC 305
Whilst Sean Strickland did initially claim that he's ready to go to 'war' with the South African, he later slammed the idea of said title rematch taking place on African soil – yet DDP isn't the only one who has been in Tarzan's crosshairs following the PPV down under.
Never one to back down from the opportunity to slam his former opponents, Strickland has now taken aim at middleweight king Israel Adesanya and even claimed that 'Stylebender' isn't part of that upper echelon of UFC talent.
Speaking on the latest episode of the 'Verse Us' podcast with coach Eric Nicksick, Strickland would explain why he believes the iconic middleweight's skillset has been over-hyped down the years, starting from his interim title fight with Kelvin Gastelum.
"I just don't think Izzy's that good and let me tell you why… When he fought Kelvin, I think Kelvin sucks [but] everyone’s like 'Izzy is this and that'… I’ve sparred Kelvin so many times [since], where I’m like 'You kind of had a close fight against Kelvin?' Like you’re not that f***** good.
"You’re not that f***** good. You fought f**** [Paulo] Costa, Costa was scared sh****** of you, you f***** blew on him he fell asleep, Izzy is just not that f***** good… When I say you're not that good, I'm not talking about 90% of the roster; I'm talking about the 10% of the f***** most elite guys – and you're not in that."
Strickland justified his take by sharing how the last time he sparred with Gastelum, it took less than two rounds before the pair ended up in an all-out brawl on the training mats and that he 'put a beating' on The Ultimate Fighter 17 winner.
"We're sparring and moving, and he hits me so hard that I'm like 'Oh we're fighting now' and halfway through the second round Beneil [Dariush] says 'You guys are f***** done' cause that's the amount of beating I put on [him].
"Kelvin's a stud but we're talking about the top echelon and so the fact that Kelvin did so well with him [Adesanya] I was like 'Nah, you're [not that] good dude.' He doesn't have that f***** dog in him."
Strickland ended his rant by noting that "I was a fan of Izzy, [but] I hope he enjoys retirement."
Daniel Cormier warns Sean Strickland over No. 1 contender spot
Whilst Dana White has stated that Sean Strickland will be the next title challenger for DDP, former double champion Daniel Cormier believes that the American 'shouldn't feel so good' about the spot he finds himself.
On the recent episode of Good Guy / Bad Guy, Cormier argued that he's picked up something in White's tone of voice which could suggest the middleweight title picture is far more open than Strickland realizes.
"He shouldn't feel so good because when Dana speaks, he might go 'This guy's next, this is who we have.' But there's a tone to his voice that makes you believe that what he's telling you is certain. I didn't hear that tone; I didn't hear that for-sure tone that Sean Strickland [will be next].
"He said 'Well, we've got Sean Strickland. He's the next guy in line' but when he's certain, it's 'Sean Strickland vs. the winner of this fight, it doesn't matter what happens down the line' – he will tell you right to your face what's happening."
Ultimately, Cormier concluded that despite what Dana White has previously stated, there's plenty of room for undefeated phenom Khamzat Chimaev to leapfrog Strickland, should he get past Robert Whittaker in October.
"I don't feel like we got that with Strickland, so I do believe that there's room for Chimaev to work his way in there."
