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UFC legend Chael Sonnen recently made an appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, and had a lot of positive things to say about Sean Strickland.
Sonnen spoke on Strickland's newfound fame, and his rise to stardom after his dominant performance over longtime middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya. Then, 'The American Gangster' went on to speak about Strickland as a person, recalling the day he met the UFC middleweight champion for the first time.
He said:
"The first day that I met Sean Strickland...he was 21 years old, he had the same haircut then as he's got now. He introduced himself, we ended up being partners that day. He told someone along the way, he mentioned his record, which happened to be 17-0. You can't even have 17 fights by the time you're 21. You can't even get a fight sanctioned till you're 18, it's just this thing - Had I met a liar? So, I end up sparring with him, I came off the mat and I told Brittney, I said, whether he's 17-0 or not, if he has had 17 fights, he has won them all. That guy is special."
Check out the clip here (29:27 for Sonnen's comments on Sean Strickland):
Sean Strickland pens passionate thoughts on abuse following UFC press conference
Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis got into it at the UFC 2024 Season Press Conference, after Du Plessis made some comments on the abuse Strickland suffered as a child at the hands of his father.
Strickland has now taken to social media and has written a passionate statement on abuse, PTSD, and the effects it can have on an individual. He wrote:
"PTSD can make a strong man weak or a weak man strong.. Years and years of abuse just changes you as a man.. The hate just doesn't go away. The sad truth is I'm one of millions but I only matter because there is a camera in my face... Most people just suffer in silence and drown their demons in alcohol or drugs. @theovon thanks for saying you'd delete the video for me.. I wanted you to, hell still kinda do but at the end of the day.. it's life....ptsd"
Strickland posted a picture of himself in Theo Von's studio, with the caption suggesting that the two had a conversation on the very same subject and that it may be released in a video soon.
