"They know it's Israel Adesanya" - Ex-UFC two-division champion discusses why Sean Strickland may not get his rematch against Dricus du Plessis

Former UFC double champ Daniel Cormier thinks that Sean Strickland might have to wait for the middleweight title shot in light of the recent fight announcements.

At UFC 293, Strickland defeated former two-time UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya to win the 185-pound title. However, he lost it to South Africa's Dricus du Plessis via split decision in a closely contested fight at UFC 298.

Strickland has been calling for the rematch ever since. However, it has been speculated that the UFC might be trying to book Du Plessis vs. Adesanya next due to the fierce rivalry between and marketing potential.

On a recent episode of the Good Guy/Bad Guy show, former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier discussed the recently announced Robert Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev fight. 'DC' believes the announcement of this fight suggests that the UFC has finalized the next middleweight title challenger. He said:

"This fight [Whittaker vs. Chimaev] tells me two things. It tells me, one - these two are going to fight in Saudi Arabia to decide who gets the championship opportunity. It tells me, two - the next fight for the middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis is already done! They know it's Israel Adesanya."

Cormier argued that the UFC would have chosen either Whittaker or Chimaev as the next challenger for Du Plessis had it not been for Adesanya and pondered over Strickland's chances:

"I don't know what this means for Sean Strickland. But I really do feel, like, he might get pushed to the back now that they book the fight between those two."

Catch Cormier's comments below (4:16):

---

Chael Sonnen proposes a theory as to why the UFC might be pushing Israel Adesanya over Sean Strickland

Former UFC fighter Chael Sonnen believes the UFC might be saving Sean Strickland for another rising contender. Speaking further in the aforementioned episode of the Good Guy/Bad Guy show, Sonnen said:

"I have two guesses. One, is that Sean Strickland is used as a back-up fighter for either of these two major matches that we're speaking about [Whittaker vs. Chimaev and Du Plessis vs. Adesanya]."

"The second, there is a reason Bo Nickal is getting the push. There is a reason that Bo Nickal is getting the shine at UFC 300. I don't know what it is but my guess is at some point, he's going to have to play with one of the big names. That big name that's sitting available, it's going to be Sean Strickland." [9:06]

Bo Nickal, who is one of the highly touted prospects of the middleweight division, will fight Cody Brundage in the opening bout of the UFC 300 main card. It will be interesting to see if Sonnen's theory aligns with the UFC's plans going forward.