Sean Strickland isn’t the slightest bit surprised by Luke Rockhold’s withdrawal from their now-canceled middleweight bout at UFC 268 next month.
Rockhold was expected to take on Strickland after a two-year layoff but was forced to shelve his UFC comeback due to injury. The former UFC and Strikeforce middleweight champion is reported to have suffered a herniated disc in his back.
Strickland, however, doesn’t believe Rockhold had any intention of making the walk to the octagon next month and claims he almost KO’d the 36-year-old in sparring.
Sean Strickland reacts to Luke Rockhold withdrawing from there fight at 268 pic.twitter.com/NDe2TAL5Vw
— 231 Lb Crute (@Bendaman2001) October 12, 2021
“He was never going to make it to the fight lmao… no one is surprised I sparred him once and almost put him out.. didn’t even spar the second round, walked out of the gym lmao.. I knew this wasn’t happening,” Strickland, who is on a five-fight streak, posted.
Strickland is now without an opponent for UFC 268 but the UFC will no doubt be scrambling for a suitable replacement.
The pay-per-view, which is one of the most anticipated events of the year, features two title bouts: a welterweight championship rematch between Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington and a strawweight title bout between Rose Namajunas and Weili Zhang.
UFC 268 is scheduled to take place on Nov. 6 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
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