There might not be anyone on the UFC roster that loves fighting more than Sean Strickland does. Since joining the UFC in 2014, Strickland has made the walk to the Octagon 17 times and, regardless of the result, he’s enjoyed every minute of it.
In October 2020, Strickland made the move back up to middleweight, where he was undefeated. He’s continued that trend and finds himself on a five-fight winning streak, which is the best of his UFC career thus far.
Don't Miss Any Of This Weekend's UFC Fight Night
On Saturday, February 5, Strickland will meet Jack Hermansson in the center of the Octagon for his second straight UFC main event at UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs Strickland. It’s a big opportunity for Strickland and could help cement his name as a true challenger for Israel Adesanya’s middleweight throne.
As he readies to take on Hermansson, we look back at some of Strickland’s defining moments in the UFC.
Sean Strickland vs Bubba McDaniel
UFC 171 – March 15, 2014
Strickland entered the UFC as an undefeated prospect and made waves right off the bat. Strickland used heavy ground-and-pound to keep McDaniel on the canvas, and after using his pressure to break McDaniel a bit, he was able to capitalize once McDaniel gave up his back and sink in a deep rear naked choke in the first round.
Sean Strickland vs Alex Garcia
UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs Cowboy – February 21, 2016
In just his second UFC fight, Strickland was also showing flashes of his potential. His trademark pressure was on display as he peppered Garcia with strikes late into the third round. Once Garcia stumbled, Strickland never let off the gas and went after his opponent until he landed the knockout blow.
Sean Strickland vs Nordine Taleb
UFC Fight Night: Volkan vs Smith – October 27, 2018
Facing a respected opponent like Nordine Taleb in Canada might make some people nervous. Not Strickland. The California native came out on fire against Taleb, pressuring the veteran on his way to a second-round knockout.
Sean Strickland vs Brendan Allen
UFC Fight Night: Hall vs Silva
This was the fight that really propelled Strickland into the middleweight conversation. Strickland followed up his up win over Jack Marshman 14 days earlier with a resounding KO of Brendan Allen. Beating Allen announced that Strickland was ready to make a real run and deserved to be in the 185-pound rankings.
Sean Strickland vs Uriah Hall
UFC Fight Night: Hall vs Strickland
Strickland’s first main event success was nearly perfect; the only thing he didn’t do was get a finish over Uriah Hall. But other than that, Strickland couldn’t have had a better performance. His dominated Hall from start to finish and connected with 186 significant strikes (which is a UFC middleweight record for a single fight) on his way to a unanimous decision victory.
UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs Magomedov took place live from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 1, 2023. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!