"Sean's gotta be the favorite" - Jake Shields explains why Sean Strickland could win Israel Adesanya rematch 

Sean Strickland's victory over Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 is the talk of the MMA town right now.

'Tarzan' defeated Adesanya in a manner that few people saw coming, as Strickland dominated 'The Last Stylebender' on the feet over five rounds. Despite being a +450 underdog, Strickland was able to evade all of his opponent's attacks, and outlanded Adesanya by over 40 strikes.

Sean Strickland won via unanimous decision, with all three judges scoring the bout 49-46, and there are talks of an immediate rematch being granted to Israel Adesanya.

Former UFC fighter Jake Shields was recently interviewed by Helen Yee, during which he shared his thoughts on how a rematch between the two middleweights could unfold.

Shields believes that Sean Strickland would be the favorite heading into a second fight, and noted that 'Tarzan' had the ability to defeat Adesanya on the ground, as well as on the feet:

"Sean's got to be the favorite after that fight. He won four out of the five rounds, I can't really see Sean not coming in as the favorite in [the rematch]... I would definitely pick Sean in the rematch. And it could be the same [as the first fight], but like I said, Sean has better grappling [than Adesanya]. He just chose not to use it, he has that option to go for takedowns and use his jiu-jitsu."

Watch the video below from 2:05:

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Eric Nicksick explains why he thought Sean Strickland would get pulled from UFC 293 after incident in Australia

Sean Strickland took on Israel Adesanya in the main event of UFC 293 in Sydney, Australia, last weekend. But according to Strickland's head coach, Eric Nicksick, the fight almost got canceled due an incident that 'Tarzan' was involved in during fight week.

Strickland is one of MMA's wildest characters, and frequently produces controversial statements whether it be at a UFC press conference or on social media.

Whilst speaking at media day during UFC 293 fight week, Sean Strickland admitted that he punched a fan in the stomach after being insulted by him earlier that week.

Eric Nicksick, a coach at Xtreme Couture MMA, has now shed light on the Australian goverment's involvement following Strickland's incident with the fan. He said this:

"I thought we were gonna get pulled, I really did. So they went to the beach, and Sean basically incriminates himself during the fight week, he's like, 'Yeah this guy comes up and I punched him in the belly'. And apparently the Australian government or whoever heard this. And it went downhill from there, it got to a point where they were flying John Crouch out from Arizona to come out and corner Jared Cannonier."

Watch the video below from 8:40: