Sean Strickland knocked out Jonny Parsons in a sparring session, and then the UFC middleweight champion drove him home. That’s the story Parsons told Sherdog, and it comes with a cost: he says he could barely train for his fight on Dana White’s Contender Series afterward.
The Contender Series is a job interview. Win impressively and you might walk out with a UFC contract. Lose, or look flat, and you’re back to the regional circuit wondering what happened. Spending part of camp unable to train properly is about the worst prep a guy can have for that kind of night, and Parsons laid it at the feet of one of the hardest sparring partners in the sport.
Nobody who has followed Strickland’s career will be shocked that his room gets rough. He has never pretended his gym is a day spa. The ride home is the part that fits the man, though. He’ll put you on the mat and then make sure you get back to your couch in one piece.
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The champ’s week
Strickland is sitting on the 185-pound belt after taking it from Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 328 in May. Chimaev hasn’t stepped back into the cage since. He’s booked to grapple Colby Covington in the main event of RAF Abu Dhabi on Nov. 14, then face Jorge Masvidal in a submission only match headlining ALF League’s first event on Dec. 4 in Dubai, MMA Fighting reported. That will be his sixth non-MMA outing since losing the title.
Meanwhile, the champion’s name keeps coming up in other people’s plans. Michael Bisping said on his YouTube channel that Islam Makhachev, who holds the welterweight title and is riding a 17-fight win streak, deserves a shot at a third UFC belt by moving up to face Strickland. Bisping hedged on the pick: “I’m not saying he beats Sean, Khamzat [Chimaev] couldn’t beat Sean, but Islam wouldn’t get tired at 185, because that’s what Khamzat did.”
Makhachev is first waiting on the winner of Carlos Prates vs. Michael Morales, an interim title fight in the UFC 337 co-main event. Yes, an interim belt in a division where the actual champion is healthy and active. Don’t get me started.
Strickland, for his part, spent Halloween weekend posting a video with Anthony Hernandez testing which is faster, drawing a gun or throwing hands. Normal stuff.
Quick take
I’ve heard a lot of sparring war stories over a lot of overpriced fight-week beers, and most of them end with somebody limping to the parking lot alone. Parsons got flattened by the best middleweight on the planet and then got chauffeured by him. That’s an awful week of camp and a pretty great anecdote. If Parsons gets the contract, he’ll tell this one for 20 years. If he doesn’t, he at least knows exactly how hard a world champion hits, which is more than most guys on the Contender Series can say.
