"I might actually have to die" - Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen vehemently defend Sean Strickland's performance at UFC 312

Sean Strickland's loss to Dricus du Plessis at UFC 312 has been widely regarded as one of his most lackluster performances inside the octagon. However, UFC legends Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen were more forgiving with their views on how Strickland fought.

The two men, who serve as opposing coaches on 'The Ultimate Fighter 33,' shared their thoughts at 'TUF 33' Media Day. They defended Strickland from the wave of criticism he had been receiving, with Cormier believing that Strickland was well within his right to fight the way he did.

'DC' said:

"It's kind of crazy how much people are piling on. Sure he lost. Sometimes you get beat. You know what's crazy? I get it that he can be like, 'I'm this, I'm gonna do this.' Dude, sometimes it just doesn't work. Your intention is to go out there and die right? And some guy kicks your butt to the point that you're like, 'Man, I might actually have to die fighting this dude.' And you're like, 'I don't want to do that sometimes,' right? You have the right to pivot and turn."

Once Sonnen's input was requested by Cormier, he expressed similar sentiments about the ex-UFC middleweight champion, stating:

"Sure, well having your nose broke, it hurts really bad, like breaking a finger. And breaking your nose, two small things, but I will just tell you, the pain is really immense, and to watch Sean reset it and stay in that fight, the math was already against him when his nose broke. He was not going to win that fight, he did not have the power."

Check out Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen discussing Sean Strickland's loss (24:58):

The loss marked Strickland's second defeat to du Plessis, who has defended the middleweight belt twice in decisive fashion.

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Sean Strickland's coach criticized his UFC 312 performance

Eric Nicksick is one of the greatest coaches in contemporary MMA. Unfortunately, his professional relationship with Sean Strickland may have come to an end after Nicksick expressed his frustration over Strickland's performance during a recent interview with Ariel Helwani.

He said:

"It was just uninspired fighting to me. It just seemed like he was sleepwalking. It was tough, man. I was trying to dig him out of it through the rounds. I didn't know if he was trying to collect data in the beginning, or if it was just a slow start or what was going on, but as the rounds began to progress, I could just tell."

Check out Eric Nicksick on Sean Strickland's loss (1:02):

Strickland, though, was less than pleased with his coach's public criticism, and called for an end to their professional dynamic.