Having to sit through a Sean Strickland interview or news conference often can be an exasperating experience, but for as lewd and crude as he is on the mic, there’s no denying the man can fight.
Still, when the calendar turned from 2022 to 2023, who actually believed Strickland would win the UFC middleweight championship? Anyone?
It seemed inconceivable.
For starters, even while he was on the rise, Strickland (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) never spoke seriously about UFC title aspirations, instead resorting to self-deprecating humor to let us know that all he ever wants to do is fight. As he was climbing the ranks and nearing serious title contention, Strickland hit a rough patch to close out 2022. He was brutally knocked out by eventual champ Alex Pereira in July at UFC 276 then dropped a five-round split decision to former title challenger Jared Cannonier in the UFC Fight Night 216 headliner Dec. 17.
How would Strickland respond to the first skid of his career? By jumping right back into the cage, of course.
When Kelvin Gastelum withdrew from his scheduled UFC Fight Night 217 headliner in January, Strickland stepped in on five days’ notice – just four weeks after losing to Cannonier – to meet Nassourdine Imavov in a light heavyweight bout. Strickland went on to outpoint Imavov for a unanimous decision win, which set the tone for the rest of his 2023.
A second-round TKO finish of Abusupiyan Magomedov followed on July 1 in the UFC on ESPN 48 headliner, which earned Strickland a Performance of the Night bonus, but a title fight wasn’t even considered – until he was needed.
Sep 9, 2023; Sydney, NSW, AUSTRALIA; Israel Adesanya (red gloves) fights Sean Strickland (blue gloves) during UFC 293 at Qudos Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jasmin Frank-USA TODAY Sports
Things lined up perfectly for a grudge match between then-middleweight champ Israel Adesanya and Dricus Du Plessis to take place Sept. 10 at UFC 293 in Sydney. But when Du Plessis couldn’t accept the title shot because of a foot injury, that left the UFC in a conundrum.
With no other viable option for Adesanya, the promotion turned to Strickland, who accepted the title shot on roughly one months’ notice. Adesanya was a massive 6-to-1 favorite to beat Strickland, a roughly 4-to-1 underdog.
In all-time shocking fashion, Strickland put on the performance of his career. He didn’t just beat Adesanya. He dominated him over the course of 25 minutes to win a lopsided unanimous decision and claim the UFC middleweight belt in his final fight of the year.
UFC interim heavyweight champ Tom Aspinall, UFC welterweight champ Leon Edwards, UFC lightweight champ Islam Makhachev, Bellator bantamweight champ Patchy Mix, UFC flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja, and UFC light heavyweight champ Alex Pereira all received consideration for this award.
But given the way he rebounded from a down 2022 to go 3-0 and pull off one of the biggest title-fight upsets in UFC history, Sean Strickland is MMA Junkie’s 2023 Male Fighter of the Year.
