Fans recently expressed their thoughts on Nina-Marie Daniele's touching message for Sean Strickland following his win at UFC 302. Strickland squared off against Paulo Costa in the co-main event of the pay-per-view, with both men hoping to bounce back from their previous losses and advance toward another shot at UFC gold.
Strickland entered the fight on the back of a split decision loss to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 297, losing his middleweight title in the process. Meanwhile, Costa was heading into the fight with three losses in his previous five bouts. In his last octagon outing at UFC 297, the Brazilian lost to Robert Whittaker via unanimous decision.
During their middleweight bout, Costa retaliated to Strickland's constant pressure and front blows to the body with leg kicks. Strickland appeared to be in control of the tempo the entire time, landing more punches and forcing Costa to defend from the back.
'Tarzan's' aggressiveness did step up in the latter seconds of the fifth round as he delivered a last-ditch barrage of punches and kicks intended to end the fight.
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The bout lasted 25 minutes and ended in a split-decision victory for Strickland. The judges scored the contest 46-49, 50-45, and 49-46.
Daniele, who is a close friend of Strickland, recently took to X and congratulated him on the win, writing:
''Sometimes you meet a motherf***er you realize was your brother in another life. Some of y’all don’t understand our friendship and I really dgaf - I’ll always be in your corner, homies for life, to the death you freaking lunatic! Congratulations Sean Strickland @SStricklandMMA #ufc #ufc302''
Fans rushed to the comments section to share their reactions.
One fan wrote:
''LOYALTY IS EVERYTHING !! That's just FACTZ''
Another fan wrote:
''The friendship you guys have is ones that last a lifetime! Unity is key! I love this!''
Other fans wrote:
''Yall are a great duo''
''Epic friendship''
Check out some more reactions below:
Nina-Marie Daniele's response to fans questioning her relationship with Sean Strickland
Nina-Marie Daniele previously addressed followers who questioned her relationship with Sean Strickland, as many believe their connection goes beyond friendship.
'Tarzan' and Daniele worked together on multiple interviews and social media videos in the run-up to UFC 297, demonstrating their close relationship. She even praised Strickland following his loss at UFC 297.
In a video that Daniele shared on Instagram earlier this year, Strickland talked about his love for MMA.
Check out the post below:
In response to a fan's comment, Daniele addressed the relationship rumors, stating:
''You’ve never had a female friend? ean is one of my best friends and I’ll always have his back''