Sean Strickland‘s head coach, Eric Nicksick, believes that Strickland could have won his fight at UFC 297 with a few tweaks, including a greater focus on wrestling and varying his offensive techniques.
Eric Nicksick, the head coach of Sean Strickland, has some thoughts. He reckons that the ex-champ could’ve clinched the win at UFC 297. Just a few tweaks, that’s all it would’ve taken.
Strickland lost a split decision to the new champ, Dricus du Plessis. This happened during the main event of UFC’s first pay-per-view card of the year. It was January, and the fight was a nail-biter.
Nicksick, the Xtreme Couture head honcho, had some insights. He shared what Strickland could’ve done differently. The goal? To tip the scales in his favor with the judges.
Nicksick’s advice? “Win a little bit more of the optics battle.” He’s said it before, and he’ll say it again. Strickland’s style is like death by 1,000 paper cuts. His jab is his weapon of choice. But, sometimes, judges get bored with the same offensive technique.
In that camp, they were focusing on the lead teep and the rear teep. Why? A few reasons. First, DDP had a step-through juggernaut move. The teep would’ve neutralized that. Second, they wanted to wear down DDP’s gas tank. Kicking him in the belly would’ve slowed him down. Lastly, it would’ve given the judges another scoring element. Even if it was just a body kick or teep, it would’ve broken the monotony of the jabs.
Strickland was MMA Fighting’s 2023 Fighter of the Year. He won the middleweight title with a lopsided decision over Israel Adesanya at UFC 293. That was in September. Du Plessis got the first shot at the title. Despite the loss, Strickland put on a great show.
Nicksick thinks wrestling optics could’ve helped. If they could turn back time, that is. Strickland is a good wrestler. Nicksick wasn’t asking him to take DDP down. But, there were opportunities to get on top. To make DDP think twice about trying that again.
When Strickland got taken down, he got up without any consequences. That needed to change. After the first round, DDP shot. He was trying to steal the optics of a close round. Nicksick told Strickland to expect offensive wrestling when he heard the 30-second mark. In the second round, DDP did the same thing. It might’ve won him the round.
Strickland shouldn’t be afraid to wrestle offensively. He shouldn’t be afraid to turn the tide. To hit DDP a few times. To make him worry about getting back up. Because that might make DDP think twice about shooting again.
Strickland’s next fight is against Paulo Costa. It’s at UFC 302, happening on June 1 in Newark, N.J.
Nicksick was impressed by Costa’s last fight. He lost a decision to ex-champ Robert Whittaker at UFC 298. That was in February. Nicksick likes the matchup, but he knows Costa is a tough nut to crack.
Nicksick said, “Costa is a beast, man.” He’s cornered against him once with Uriah Hall. He thought Costa looked good in the Whittaker fight. He thinks Robert Whitaker is the best in the division, skill-wise. If there’s no Izzy Adesnaya, Whitaker would be the champ for a long time. So, Costa performing well against Whitaker means he’s a beast. And he’s back. Nicksick knows it’s going to be a tough fight.