What Gym Does Sean Strickland Train At? Coach, Teammates and Rank

Not much was expected of Sean Strickland in his title bout against Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 last year. But when he won the title, there was a lot more expectation on him to retain it against Dricus du Plessis, which he failed to do. But now, Strickland’s taking on Paulo Costa at UFC 302, which could decide the trajectory of his middleweight run.

The main event of UFC 293 was, hands down, one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. And a large part of the credit goes to Strickland’s coach and teammates, who helped him to become the middleweight champion of the UFC last year.

All about Sean Strickland’s coach, gym, and teammates

Sean Strickland is currently ranked #1 on the promotion’s middleweight rankings. The 33-year-old has a unique and unusual style of fighting that can best be described as the MMA version of the ‘Philly Shell’ boxing style, (popularized by Floyd Mayweather).

He trains under coach Eric Nicksick at the Xtreme Couture gym in Las Vegas, Nevada. Nicksick is also the trainer of notable MMA fighters such as Francis Ngannou, Dan Ige, Miesha Tate, and Chris Curtis, who are thus stablemates of ‘Tarzan.

Notably, before his Adesanya fight, the American trained with two-division UFC and former Glory champion, Alex Pereira. The latter had defeated Adesanya in their first UFC fight and the training seemed to have helped ‘Tarzan’ beat ‘Izzy’.

Throughout his professional MMA career of 28 wins and 5 losses, the middleweight champion has used his elite, high-volume striking, and toughness to reach the highest levels of the sport. Given that Strickland went toe-to-toe against arguably this generation’s greatest middleweight fighter, he should be able to do well against Paulo Costa.

While Sean Strickland’s coach, Eric Nicksick, might have helped him get world-class as a fighter, he also did the same for Francis Ngannou, who changed his life on the financial side of things.

Strickland’s coach Eric Nicksick earns ‘life-changing’ money

Dana White never thought that Francis Ngannou would be able to create the same buzz in the boxing world as he did in the UFC. But guess what? The Cameroonian-French star exceeded all expectations. Although he could beat Tyson Fury, he put on a show for the fans, earning a moral victory against the naysayers and doubters. However, standing toe-to-toe against one of the greatest heavyweights was not the only victory he had because the money he earned was more than he had ever made while fighting under the UFC banner. That, in turn, helped his coach earn a significant amount of money as well.

“It was the most money I’ve ever been paid by a fighter – it was unbelievable,” Nicksick told MMA Junkie Radio in 2023. “When I saw my Wells Fargo account that morning, it literally brought me to tears. That’s a true story. Literally brought me to tears because he changed my life – not only from a professional standpoint, but a monetary standpoint.” 

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Meanwhile, money has never been a concern for Sean Strickland, at least that’s what he claims. However, he doesn’t hate living the good life. As such, his UFC 302 fight is sure to get him a hefty paycheck, but will he be able to beat the Brazilian star? Who do you think will win in the UFC 302 headliner?

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