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Just a few months ago, none of the fans expected Sean Strickland to be the next challenger for Israel Adesanya’s middleweight title. But as unexpected as the world of MMA is, we are just days away from this unconventional fight. Ever since the announcement of this match-up, everyone has been debating on one simple question – Does Strickland have enough weapons in his arsenal to defeat Adesanya?

The majority of MMA fans and pundits consider Adesanya to be one of the best strikers in UFC. However, coming from a kickboxing background, ‘Stybender’ isn’t equally skilled in grappling. Subsequently, his opponents can take advantage of this fact and take action to the mats in a fight against him. However, fans are not expecting Strickland to wrestle in his UFC 293 title fight. Why? Simply because ‘Tarzan’ hasn’t showcased his grappling talent in the MMA cage.

The hidden grappling talent of Sean Strickland revealed?

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Recently, fellow UFC fighter Brendan Allen made some shocking revelations about Strickland’s wrestling talent. According to Allen, he had heard that Strickland could easily perform a successful takedown on Magomed Ankalaev in the training leading up to his fight against Alex Pereira.

 

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“I heard that, leading up to the Alex fight, that he was taking down (Magomed) Ankalaev pretty effortlessly,” he said. What makes this statement even more surprising is that Strickland did not use his grappling skills against Pereira. Instead, he was focused more on the striking aspect during the entire fight. However, he was unsuccessful in his attempt, as Strickland lost the fight via KO in the 2nd round.

Read More – Sean Strickland Gets Exposed in Israel Adesanya’s Rant as UFC Champ Reveals First Ever Interaction With Rival Ahead of UFC 293

Now, with Allen’s recent revelations, fans have just one question in mind. Will Sean Strickland try to take Israel Adesanya down?

Fans react to Sean Strickland’s grappling skills

Unsurprisingly, fans had some wild reactions after hearing this news. Some used sarcasm to dismiss Allen’s remarks as inaccurate. Meanwhile, others simply didn’t believe it.

  • “I saw it. Ronda Rousey was knocking out male Olympic boxers in the gym that day too”
  • “Yeah Dan Hooker whoops Izzy in training too”
  • “Bullsh*t”
  • “No way lol”

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However, other fans also backed ‘Tarzan’ for his first UFC title fight.

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  • “Sean plz win this for us Izzy will have a mental breakdown”
  • “Real want him to beat izzy but thats like mission impossible for him not taking anything away from him but izzy will kill him long range wise i see he doesnt stand a chance he can try though”
  • “Wtf Strickland is doing then bruh….win this fight plsss”

Moreover, others had some bold things to say about this.

  • “I have no doubt that if Sean used his wrestling it would be a very competitive fight, but we all know that ain’t gonna happen.”
  • “Sean please don’t win. Cause if you win and Izzy can’t fight then Alex is gonna come make love to your jaw with his shin”

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With these reactions, it is evident that fans cannot wait to see how the UFC 293 main event pans out. Who do you think comes out victorious this weekend? Let us know in the comments below.

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