Pic! Ripped ‘Tarzan’ Ready For UFC 297

Sean Strickland has never been the fittest fighter on the roster, but he’s looking ripped like an Instagram model in recent training pics.

Sean Strickland is hard at work in the gym preparing for his UFC 297 middleweight title fight against Dricus Du Plessis.

2023 was a stunning year for Strickland. He headlined the last Fight Night card of 2022 … and then the first Fight Night card of 2023. That January 14th decision win over Nassourdine Imavov led to a second round TKO of Abusupiyan Magomedov in July, which in turn led to a title shot against Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 in September.

The UFC wasn’t particularly excited about giving the shot to Strickland, but the guy got the gig on account of being ready and willing. He then beat Adesanya in one of the biggest upsets in MMA history (highlights here), becoming the UFC middleweight champion.

Somewhere along the way, he went from being largely hated by a large percentage of the fanbase to kinda loved and appreciated due to his insane behavior. Over the holidays, he’s won more ‘Fighter of the Year’ awards than we can count.

Now he’s putting in the hours to ensure he makes the best of 2024. Take a look at this group picture out of an XTreme Couture training session. “Tarzan” looks absolutely jacked!

Strickland hasn’t always looked very sculpted when he shows up for a fight. We’re sure there’s clips of him out there talking mad s— about ripped dudes with six-pack abs and all the other ultra-physique accoutrements. Yet here he is, not even all dehydrated on weigh-in day, looking like a fitness model.

Strickland and Du Plessis fight on January 20th, 2024 from the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. Also on the card: Raquel Pennington vs. Mayra Bueno Silva for the vacant women’s bantamweight title.