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UFC 297 will see Sean Strickland attempt to make his first title defense as he takes on Dricus Du Plessis in the main event at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada.
Fight week is well underway as we inch closer to January 20, which is when the UFC's first pay-per-view card of the year will play out.
The days leading up to a pay-per-view card are typically accompanied by the now popular series, UFC Embedded, which gives fans an in-depth look into fighters and their preparation.
Speaking in an episode of the UFC 297 series Sean Strickland expressed his belief that the weight cut, which is a big part of fight week, is the hardest part. He said:
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"The only thing that I really focus on is making weight. Fighting is the easy part, it's going there and fighting last 25 minutes. I hate this sh*t. I can spar endless times, endless, you wanna have me spar 10, 15 rounds, no problem. You told me to f**k around, I f**king hate it. Next three days kinda suck, tomorrow after I wake up I'll do a nice jog, media day all day. Then I go out to my buddy's gym who I talk to. Then, wednesday, repeat. Thursday, cut weight. We get paid to make weight, not to fight. F**king sucks."
Check out Strickland's comments here (4:21):
Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis run into each other
The narrative heading into UFC 297 was that the two men competing in the main event, Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis, were engaged in a heated rivalry. The two got into a brawl at UFC 296 and have had plenty of back and forth leading up to their fight.
In the latest episode of Embedded, Strickland can be seen sitting by himself as Dricus Du Plessis and his girlfriend, Vasti Spiller, pass by. Surprisingly, Du Plessis and Strickland cordially greet each other, despite their history.
Strickland further goes on to tell Du Plessis:
"Hey, solid guy. Thanks for being understanding."
The two then wished each other luck and parted ways. This interaction possibly stemmed from the recent DMs that Strickland had sent Du Plessis, in which the champion requested the South African to refrain from speaking about his traumatic childhood.
