Luke Rockhold believes Sean Strickland proved him right at UFC 276.
This pas weekend, Strickland put on one of the most derided performances in recent memory when he faced world-class kickboxer Alex Pereira. Strickland, who talked before the fight about not being afraid to strike with his more accomplished opponent, marched forward with his hands low and got brutally knocked out in the first round. And for Rockhold, who has not been shy about calling Strickland a “f****** idiot,” this just proved what he’d been saying all along.
“I think he got conned by the system,” Rockhold told Submission Radio. “Sean just showed how stupid ****** he was. He was supposed to stand by him, prove his stupidity. But he [fell for it].. It’s a common occurrence. Many people experience it. You try to over-prove yourself and do something stupid. That’s the game, that’s the fight game. He lost the battle .”
because it was a mental battle *****.
Rockhold shares a contentious past with Strickland. The two were scheduled to fight at UFC 268, and spent months taking shots at one another beforehand, until Rockhold was forced out of the card due to injury. Instead, Strickland got pushed back until he eventually fought Jack Hermansson in February, setting up a de facto title eliminator against Periera. Rockhold claims that the UFC was keen to have Pereira fight Adesanya in the UFC middleweight title. Given Pereira’s success with kickboxing, Rockhold believes Strickland is the ideal man for setting up the fight.
“Yeah, it’s an intriguing story, Alex Pereira has beat Izzy twice,” Rockhold said. “And so you’re looking at any level of intrigue, and so they’re looking for someone that they can throw in the mix, even though Alex Pereira would get mauled by, 20 guys in the UFC would probably maul him. But yeah, it’s a compelling story if you get him past a brawler like Sean Strickland. They did it and now it’s going. So, it’s my job to go f****** deter that.”
Defeating the UFC or Adesanya in a highly-promised fight is a difficult task, but Rockhold has no plans to give up. Rockhold is set to face Paulo Costa at UFC 278 in August, and he’s hoping to put on the kind of performance that would allow him to jump in front of Pereira.
“” “Anything is possible in this fight and with this fight,” Rockhold stated. “Of course. Marvin Vettori is No. 1 guy in the world, right? Or Whittaker? Paulo’s only been smoked by Izzy. Vettori barely, he didn’t do anything great against him last time. So, if I can go out there and smoke him, it’s gonna tell.”
But even if Rockhold does find his way back to another title shot, that’s only half the battle. Adesanya is undefeated at middleweight and hasn’t shown any real weaknesses in the division. But Rockhold believes he has the right mix to unseat the champ and reclaim the title.
“I know how to fight Izzy,” Rockhold said. “It’s a straightforward fight. It’s an extremely tough fight. He’s a big puzzle. For a long period, he’s the most difficult middleweight puzzle. It’s sure to be exciting. However, I believe that with the right strategy it’s possible to win. Whittaker is the fight that I find the most difficult right now, as we were discussing it. It’s mine fight if I can play well with these guys. So, I just gotta be level-headed and focused and f****** go out there and do my thing.”
UFC 278 takes place Aug. 28 at the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City.
TOP STORIES
Do it. Charles Oliveira targets Khabib after an Islam Makhachev win in Brazil: ‘He’s been talking too much’.
HoF. Conor McGregor excited to enter the UFC Hall of Fame one day: ‘I’m a shoe in’.
P4P. Eugene Bareman on Alexander Volkanovski: ‘If that’s not the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, then I don’t know who is’.
Show. Alex Pereira vows his fight with Israel Adesanya will be ‘better show’ after dull UFC 276 main event.
Out. Patricky Pitbull injured, Bellator 283 now headlined by Douglas Lima vs. Jason Jackson.
VIDEO STEW
Rey Sefo stating that PFL could add two weight classes.
Paul Felder and Michael Chiesa react to UFC 276.
DC reacts to his Hall of Fame induction.
Aljamain Sterling defends Israel Adesanya.
LISTEN UP
Heck Of A Morning. Discussing the fallout from UFC 276, including the P4P debate.
SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE
Congrats.
Absolutely legendary week in Las Vegas!!! It was a great week in Las Vegas! I am proud of what I did and grateful for all of the love and support I received from the hall of fame. It will be a lasting legacy. Thank you all I love you pic.twitter.com/HWffnra6Wd
— Daniel Cormier (@dc_mma) July 5, 2022
Conor.
I’ll show ya’s what’s what for a knock.
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) July 5, 2022
Deron Winn has found his niche.
Ok guys here’s my Tavares/Duplessis breakdown. Hope you enjoy! Gonna start pumping more content out over the next few weeks. pic.twitter.com/oC6CTK1IXE
— Deron Winn (@DeronWinn) July 5, 2022
Friendship.
We had to escort this guy out for a disturbance at the after party. Anybody know him? @KevinHart4real | @USMAN84kg pic.twitter.com/5mwHespnoW
— Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) July 5, 2022
That’s one hell of a diet.
Yesterday I had cake and fruity pebbles rice crispy treat for breakfast , McDonald for lunch and Taco Bell for dinner. I’ve reached my breaking point. I need to get back to health. I need redemption bad
— Brian BOOM Kelleher (@brianboom135) July 5, 2022
Beef.
Theses new school fighters are funny man call out gangsters then turn them down and fight guys with losing records.
— Jake Hadley (@JakeHadleyMMA) July 4, 2022
— Muhammad Mokaev (@muhammadmokaev) July 5, 2022
— Jake Hadley (@JakeHadleyMMA) July 5, 2022
Just shut up pic.twitter.com/ZJEIwe8V5V
— Muhammad Mokaev (@muhammadmokaev) July 6, 2022
No time for bitching on socials if u wanna chat shit let’s just fight come see me dubai Oct wys @muhammadmokaev
— Jake Hadley (@JakeHadleyMMA) July 5, 2022
I can knock you out and submit you but wasting time in someone 0-1 ? Then people will say he padding his record
— Muhammad Mokaev (@muhammadmokaev) July 6, 2022
Don’t chat shit about turning down, we have same manager, your such a idiot, thinking people believe but don’t forget we’re in same management and you cannot talk lies on social media
— Muhammad Mokaev (@muhammadmokaev) July 6, 2022
Man been gifted cars since 17 and talks bout hard life cmon
— Jake Hadley (@JakeHadleyMMA) July 4, 2022
Nice one , got my driving license at 18 and had first car at 19 , get your facts right and stop following me everywhere , focus on yourself! “Gangster”
Btw at 17 I beat a guy who smashed your face #rentfree— Muhammad Mokaev (@muhammadmokaev) July 5, 2022
Don’t go all hard on socials come see me dubai Oct
— Jake Hadley (@JakeHadleyMMA) July 5, 2022
Remember when I went to London for 1 week, I told your mate Wooding tell this bulshit guy come down for sparring I’m here for 1 week , you didn’t even turn up, now you wanna see me in Abu Dhabi? really? Abu Dhabi
— Muhammad Mokaev (@muhammadmokaev) July 6, 2022
FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Ok Rae Yoon (16-3) vs. Christian Lee (15-5); ONE Championship, Aug. 26.
Thanh Le (13-2) vs. Tang Kai (14-2); ONE Championship, Aug. 26.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Thank you for reading! See y’all tomorrow.
If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @JedKMeshew on Twitter and let him know about it. Also follow MMAFighting on Instagram and like us on Facebook.
