There aren’t many fighters on the UFC roster quite as divisive or as popular as Sean Strickland, the former UFC middleweight champion of the world.
The former middleweight champion is one of the most outspoken fighters in recent memory, with an equal portion of crowds wanting him to succeed as wanting him to fail. He stunned the MMA world when he dropped and defeated Israel Adesanya to become champion.
Now a former champion chasing a return to the top, here’s everything you need to know about Sean Strickland.
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What age is Sean Strickland?
Sean Strickland was born on 27 February 1991, in Anaheim, California, USA. He had a rough upbringing that he has spoken about over the years, overcoming abuse within his family and a flirtation with far right ideals before eventually finding MMA and competing at the top level.
As of September 2025, he is 34 years old.
Where does Sean Strickland live?
Though a California native, Sean Strickland now lives in Las Vegas, Nevada, according to MMA Junkie. He resides with his girlfriend and dog, and plans to move away from ‘Sin City’ once his fighting career is over.
He trains at the famous Xtreme Couture gym in Nevada and regularly welcomes the best in the world to train with him.
What is Sean Strickland’s height and weight?
Sean Strickland is 6 foot 1 inch (185cm) tall and currently weighs in at 185lbs, according to the UFC. He walks around in the region of 210-220lb, and on short notice for his fight with Nassourdine Imavov was only able to make the 205lb light-heavyweight limit.
He appears to not have interest, however, in moving up to light-heavyweight on a full-time basis despite his size.
Who is Sean Strickland’s girlfriend and are they married?
Sean Strickland has been dating his girlfriend since 2023. And while she has appeared in the UFC Embedded vlog series on a number of occasions, there is still not much known about her aside from a few details.
Strickland refers to her as KJ, and notes that she has been a hugely positive influence on his life. They tend to keep the deeper parts of their relationship private, but it appears that they are not yet married.
Strickland did, however, note in the first episode of the UFC 302 Embedded series that if they’re still together by the time he has retired, he expects that they would be married by then.
Sean Strickland’s X/Twitter and Instagram accounts
Sean Strickland has an official Instagram account with over 2.4 million followers which you can find @stricklandmma.
He often posts behind-the-scenes pictures of him in training and offers a glimpse into his life outside of the octagon.
Strickland also has an official X, formerly Twitter, account with 669k followers which you can find @SStricklandMMA.
However, you’ll have to keep a close eye on his content, because he has been banned from both platforms on a number of occasions. He shares regular posts that divide people politically and morally, and has broken the terms of service on X and Instagram many times.
Sean Strickland MMA record
| Record (W-L-D) | (T)KO | SUB |
| 29-7-0 | 11-2 | 4-0 |
Sean Strickland career stats
| Significant Strikes Landed per Minute | 6.01 |
| Significant Striking Accuracy | 42% |
| Significant Strikes Absorbed per Minute | 4.48 |
| Significant Strike Defense (the % of opponents strikes that did not land) | 61% |
| Average Takedowns Landed per 15 minutes | 0.78 |
| Takedown Accuracy | 64% |
| Takedown Defense (the % of opponents TD attempts that did not land) | 77% |
| Average Submissions Attempted per 15 minutes | 0.2 |
Sean Strickland’s net worth
According to MMASalaries, Strickland has earned $6,079,000 from professional fighting.
Strickland’s biggest payout came after his decision victory over Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 when he took home $1,392,000, including bonuses.
Sean Strickland’s UFC contract
Strickland is currently under contract with the UF,C where he is among the promotion’s top-paid athletes. He earns a base salary of around $50,000 per fight.
Sean Strickland’s next fight
Strickland does have another fight booked for 2025, having lost to Dricus du Plessis at UFC 312.
Sean Strickland vs Paulo Costa
Sean Strickland took on Paulo Costa in the co-main event of UFC 302 in Newark, New Jersey and despite both men promising ‘war’, the fight ultimately fell flat with Strickland earning a split-decision victory.
Interestingly, Strickland said after the event that he’d like to train with Paulo Costa moving forward and that there is a chance that the powerful Brazilian could join his team at Xtreme Couture.
Sean Strickland vs Dricus Du Plessis
Sean Strickland lost his last bout and his middleweight championship in his first defense last time out to Dricus Du Plessis. The fight went the distance but the South African won a very controversial split decision.
Many fans believe that Strickland’s outspoken political views make judges look upon him unfavorably and that he deserved to beat Du Plessis. But he also has had trouble finishing fights, which may have been what cost him on this occasion.
Sean Strickland vs Israel Adesanya
Sean Strickland shocked the world by defeating Israel Adesanya for the UFC middleweight championship in the main event of UFC 293. He traveled to Australia, which was all but a home court fight for the champion who is from New Zealand.
Strickland, who is not known as a power puncher, put Adesanya down early and almost finished the fight, but was unable to find the stoppage. He then pushed through and dominated for the entirety of the five rounds before being declared an unlikely champion.
It’s believed that despite climbing up the ranks in unfavorable matchups and overcoming the odds, Strickland was not supposed to fight Adesanya that night. The promotion clearly favored a matchup with Dricus Du Plessis, who was unavailable having fought just weeks before.
Sean Strickland vs Abus Magomedov
Sean Strickland secured a brutal knock-out victory over Abus Magomedov in the main event of UFC on ESPN in July, 2023. He surprised fans with his improved boxing after having been stopped by Alex Pereira a year to the day prior.
Strickland outstruck Magomedov and dominated in the second round before dropping him and landing a ground-and-pound finish. It stopped a two-fight skid for the American and sent him on the road to a world title fight.
Alex Pereira vs Sean Strickland
Sean Strickland was defeated by Alex Pereira in the first round of their match at UFC 276 on July 3, 2022, with the Brazilian securing a KO victory. At the time, he was viewed as a monstrous step up for the kickboxer who had just a handful of MMA fights to his name.
But Pereira showed off his fearsome striking early as he flattened Strickland, whose tough man performance could only get him so far. Since this fight, he has worked considerably on his striking and even teamed up with Pereira to work on his kickboxing.
Sean Strickland merch
Official Sean Strickland merch, including T-shirts, hoodies and walkout jerseys can be purchased on the official UFC Store. Strickland also sells his own merch at Xile Apparel. He is a massive merchandise seller and one of the most popular fighters in the UFC.
Ian Garry and Sean Strickland beef
Strickland’s divisive personality has made him an unpopular figure with some UFC fighters, most notably welterweight Ian Machado Garry. The Irishman is married to TV host and model Layla Machado Garry, who is 15 years his senior.
Strickland is one of the many people who has expressed concern at the pair’s relationship, and is credited with spreading misinformation about their personal lives. Garry has said that he will eventually move weight classes in order to pursue a fight with Strickland.
Nina Marie Daniele and Sean Strickland
Nina Marie Daniele is a social media influencer with a keen interest in MMA who reports on a number of UFC events after signing with the promotion. She is friends with Sean Strickland and has posted several YouTube videos with the UFC star including one in which they sparred together.
According to FanArch, despite speculation the pair are not dating and are in relationships with other people. However, that doesn’t stop fans from speculating about their close friendship.
Sean Strickland on the Joe Rogan podcast
Sean Strickland was a guest on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast in 2023 and you can listen to the full episode here. He discussed a number of topics, including his upbringing, the UFC and his love for firearms.
Strickland is believed to be one of the most entertaining fighters in the UFC. But having had his last few fights outside of the US or off pay-per-view, he has spent very little time interacting with Joe Rogan at events.
Sean Strickland Sneako controversy
Strickland infamously sparred with popular streamer Sneako in early 2024. The pair were taking part in a live stream, and with the influencer wanting to improve his boxing skills ahead of a potential fight in the future, he asked the UFC star to help him out.
However, Strickland after a few minutes of light work decided to go full-tilt in an effort to knock out the streamer. He brutalized Sneako and bloodied him, even ignoring multiple towels being thrown in by coaches who wanted the spar to end.
Strickland has since expressed that he was impressed with Sneako’s resilience, with many joking that it was indicative of his lack of power that he couldn’t put down a non-bout amateur.
Sean Strickland gunpoint
In November of last year, Strickland’s home was invaded and he was forced to defend himself against the intruder. He is an infamous fan of firearms, and held the person at gunpoint while waiting for police to arrive on the scene.
“Here’s what I know….,” Strickland’ explained after the fact. “The guy was drunk stomping out a girl, a security guard seen it, he jumped in his car and drove off.
“Security followed him, hit a curb, completely shredded his tire, drove on the rim for awhile then jumped out and tried to hide at my house. I initially thought he was stealing my car…”
The man was later arrested, according to Strickland.
Sean Strickland’s childhood
Sean Strickland has not been shy in opening up about his difficult upbringing growing up in California. He watched as his father would attack his mother, and he also suffered emotional and physical abuse during his early years.
“I remember lying in bed; I remember I stopped believing in God,” he told comedian Theo Von during an infamous appearance on his This Past Weekend podcast. “I was probably in third or fourth grade.
“I always slept under my parents’ bed or next to their bedroom door, because I thought my father was going to kill my mother any day. Then one day he was under the bed and started strangling her.
“When I came out, all I could see was a guitar hitting my mother’s head. I ran out into the street to call the police, they arrested him, but my dumb mother bailed him out. I would say that was the tip of the iceberg.”