Sean Strickland is stuck on the sidelines for just a little while longer.
The former UFC Middleweight champion was suspended for six months by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) for his involvement in a brawl while he was supposed to be cornering his team mate. Fortunately, Strickland did opt to make amends and shorten his sentence by completing an anger management course and teaching women’s MMA, which will see him eligible to return in November rather than 2026.
With November quickly approaching, Strickland is eager to build momentum and line up a fight with his former training partner, Khamzat Chimaev. “Tarzan” has argued repeatedly in the past he’s the only man who can stand up to Chimaev’s wrestling, and he’s ready to prove it by taking on the American equivalent: surging contender and wrestling ace Anthony Hernandez.
“I would imagine me and ‘Fluffy’ might be going at it. I imagine that is the fight to make,” Strickland told MMA Junkie on Monday. “I don’t want (Israel Adesanya). I’m not going to fight Izzy. I think it’s the easier fight for me, but I want to fight that little Chechen whore. I want to fight somebody like ‘Fluffy.’ He puts me in title contention, especially with him, because all he does (is grapple). He’s like the American Chimaev.
“If I just go and outwrestle that f—ker for five rounds, it’s like, ‘All right, f—k you, whore. Go beat your cans and let me know when you’re ready.’ That’s what I’m looking for. More fights that put me back in the title. I’m one of the best grapplers in the UFC. I just don’t get to do it, but I’m one of the best grapplers in the UFC. The reason I want to fight him out of anybody is just to say, ‘All right, 25 minutes of the American Chimaev.’”
The matchup makes a lot of sense since Hernandez was forced to withdraw due to injury last month, removing him from his highly anticipated main event versus Reinier de Ridder. Regardless of that setback, Hernandez has a ton of momentum and does share stylistic similarities with Khamzat. It’s an equally great opportunity for both athletes: Strickland could return to the win column and prove his defensive wrestling, while Hernandez gets his much-deserved shot at a high-profile opponent who could catapult him into a title shot.
