Sean Strickland and his coach are parting ways. Strickland, who recently fought for the middleweight belt, had a forgettable bout in UFC 312. Going up against his former opponent Dricus Du Plessis, Strickland looked quite timid in his approach. With the rounds going by, the frustrations in Strickland’s corner was palpable. His coach, Eric Nicksick was constantly pushing him to take on the aggressive avatar. Unfortunately, the words did not seem to get executed in an appropriate manner.
This was something that Nicksick did not take in a sporting manner. Venting out his frustrations, Strickland’s coach went off in a recent Ariel Helwani interview. Soon after the reaction, it was time for ‘Tarzan’ himself to deliver a somber update.
“I like Eric, he’s a friend of mine and he’s gonna continue to be a friend of mine. Will he be in my corner, probably not,” said Strickland.
Sean Strickland reacts to Eric Nicksick’s recent comments about his performance at #UFC312:
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) February 12, 2025
“I like Eric, he’s a friend of mine and he’s gonna continue to be a friend of mine.
Will he be in my corner, probably not.”
🎥 @SStricklandMMA #UFC #MMA
pic.twitter.com/afWvhM36ld
Well, despite all the hype, the match did not turn out to be a banger. Dricus Du Plessis showed tremendous skills to dominate the game for all 5 rounds. While Strickland looked good in tandems, it was just not enough to win him the championship. And quite expectedly, Eric Nicksick had a lot to say about the same.
Eric Nicksick Criticizes Sean Strickland
Eric Nicksick cannot believe that Sean Strickland never tried to pull the trigger on Dricus Du Plessis. Despite trying to motivate him to go for the kill, Strickland failed to make a significant impact. With Du Plessis taking control, the bout looked decided long before Round 5. Appearing on Ariel Helwani’s podcast, Nicksick vented out his frustrations about the same.
“It was just uninspired fighting… it seemed like he was sleepwalking… I want to coach world champions,” said Nicksick. He further added, “It was tough, man. I was just trying to trying to dig him out of it, um, you know, through the rounds. I didn’t know if he was trying to collect data in the beginning or if it was just uh, a slow start.”
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Thus, it is evident that Nicksick’s comments might have made things a little sour between the two. Now that Strickland is without a coach at the moment, it remains to be seen how things will pan out in the future.
Also Read: Team Sean Strickland Wants THIS Change In Tactics Ahead Of Big Dricus Du Plessis Matchup
