Sean Strickland WARNED by top MMA coach after disastrous UFC 312 performance: “I want to coach world champions”
UFC superstar Sean Strickland's coach, Erick Nicksick, shared his opinion on the fighter's performance at UFC 312.
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Sean Strickland's coach isn't satisfied with the fighter's performance (via X)
Sean Strickland‘s last UFC outing against champion Dricus Du Plessis didn’t go as planned. The American failed to get his revenge, and lost the fight in a dominating fashion. After the fight at UFC 312, many including his coach Erick Nicksick have questioned the fighter’s intent going into future bouts.
Ahead of the fight, Strickland predicted to go to war against Du Plessis. He promised to give everything in his arsenal to get back the title, and provide an entertaining bout. However, his performance was quite underwhelming. According to his coach, the American fighter will have to rethink his approach.
I think he needs to evaluate what he wants to do in this sport. If it’s just to make money then that’s great, let us know. I want to coach world champions, so my motivations are different….Just to kind of show up and do that and, you know, not really back it up, just to me, was kind of uninspiring.
Erick Nicksick via The Ariel Helwani Show
Strickland has been training under Nicksick at Xtreme Couture for a long time, and won the championship together. However, it seems like the coach was unimpressed by Strickland’s lack of intensity at UFC 312. UFC veteran Demetrious Johnson had the same thing to say about the former champion after the fight. As per the legend, ‘Tarzan’ needs to change his fighting style in the future.
Eric Nicksick on Sean Strickland: I think he needs to evaluate what he wants to do in this sport. If it's just to make money then that's great, let us know. I want to coach world champions, so my motivations are different. I think that, you now, just to kind of show up and do… pic.twitter.com/NPRkTYuuve
— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) February 11, 2025
Nicksick is currently one of the most popular and demanding coaches in the MMA scene. Other than Strickland, he has coached champions such as Francis Ngannou, Aljamain Sterling, etc. While few fans didn’t like the coach saying all this publicly, others credited Nicksick for keeping it straightforward. This certainly adds to the ongoing narrative against Strickland.
UFC veteran blasts Sean Strickland after underwhelming loss at UFC 312
Sean Strickland has always been outspoken, never hesitating to push boundaries with his trash talk, earning millions of dedicated fans. However, when it comes to proving himself inside the octagon, his performances have consistently fallen short of expectations. His inability to back up his words with action has ultimately cost him dearly, tarnishing his once-promising career.
It happened last year against Paulo Costa, and he did the same at UFC 312 against Dricus Du Plessis. The South African also criticized the fighter for not coming forward during the clash. Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold also shared his views on the fight and didn’t shy away from roasting the ‘Tarzan.’
If someone breaks your nose, you’ve got to fight like a f*cking man and sack up. We all watched the fight, and we all heard the guy talk about, ‘To the death, Dutchman! To the death!’ This motherf*cker talks such a big game and then he bitches out and basically quits in the fight after he breaks his nose. What are you worried about? You have a title fight. A world title is on the line.
Luke Rockhold via The Ariel Helwani Show
Rockhold questioned Strickland’s capacity to put himself on the line and be audacious enough to fight without worrying about consequences. Well, it isn’t the first time the veteran has directed verbal jabs against Strickland. Nevertheless, it would be interesting to see how things pan out for the former champion in the future.
Related: Sean Strickland Net Worth, Endorsements, UFC contract, Wife and House
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Ameetosh Dash
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