Strickland TKOs Hernandez in Houston
Sean Strickland defeated Anthony Hernandez via Round 3 TKO at UFC Fight Night Houston on February 21, boosting his middleweight ranking comeback after a prior title loss. Strickland is now calling out champion Khamzat Chimaev, labeling him a "bully" for not defending the belt. The Morning Kombat podcast noted Strickland made "homophobic, racist, and sexist comments" during media day, including a confrontation with Joaquin Buckley over racial slurs.
- Sean Strickland’s previous title loss mentioned in the summary was a split-decision defeat to Dricus du Plessis at UFC 297 on January 20, 2024. He also lost a subsequent rematch to du Plessis by unanimous decision on February 8, 2025. - The champion Strickland is targeting, Khamzat Chimaev, is an undefeated fighter with a 15-0 record who captured the middleweight title from Dricus du Plessis in August 2025. Chimaev has expressed interest in defending the title only once before moving up to the light heavyweight division. - The loss to Strickland snapped an impressive eight-fight winning streak for Anthony "Fluffy" Hernandez. Before this bout, Hernandez had secured victories over notable opponents like Roman Dolidze and Brendan Allen. - The conflict with fellow UFC fighter Joaquin Buckley originated from a video clip where Strickland used a racial slur. This led to a public back-and-forth, with Buckley stating he wanted to confront Strickland in Houston and Strickland claiming on social media, "I did drop him in sparring." - Strickland has a history of controversial remarks, and his fight week in Houston was no exception, where he also drew criticism from former champion Amanda Nunes for his comments about female fighters. - Prior to his two losses to Dricus du Plessis, Strickland's other recent defeats came against current or former champions, including a knockout loss to Alex Pereira and a decision loss to Kamaru Usman.
