Who is Sean Strickland? Nationality, height, weight, UFC career record and stats

As Toronto’s UFC 297 brings Sean Strickland into a clash with Dricus Du Plessis, we take a look at the defending UFC Middleweight Champion.

Jeffrey MayJeff_DiarioASUpdate: Jan 19th, 2024 18:49 EST

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Sean Strickland comes into his bout with South Africa’s Dricus Du Plessis in UFC 297 as a slight underdog, which is perhaps surprising. As the current UFC Middleweight Champion and former King of the Cage Middleweight Champion, Strickland ranks number eight in the UFC men’s pound-for-pound rankings.

Born on February 27, 1991, in Anaheim, California, Strickland stands at 6 feet 1 inch and weighs 185 pounds. His combination of skill and tenacity has made him a firm fan favorite in the octagon.

Strickland’s journey in the UFC began in 2014, and since then, he has built an impressive career record of 28-5 with 11 KOs. His striking prowess and well-rounded skill set has seen him through some of the toughest competitors in the middleweight division, culminating with a stunning win in Australia last September when he got a unanimous decision over legendary champion Israel Adesanya.

Sean Strickland skipped a step of getting on the scale and went right into a final #UFC297 faceoff with Dricus Du Plessis. pic.twitter.com/qRBMxiRgpV

— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) January 19, 2024

Throughout his UFC career, Strickland has demonstrated resilience and adaptability, evolving as a fighter with each bout. His commitment to improvement and his ability to overcome adversity have endeared him to the MMA community.

While Strickland and Du Plessis both had a momentary set-to in the press conference, cooler heads have prevailed with both men walking back any talk of grudges, both admitting admiration for the other.