Did Sean Strickland just fire his head coach?
It sure seems like the former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight champion is distancing himself from his long-time coach, Eric Nicksick, after getting shutout in a dominant unanimous decision loss to Dricus du Plessis this past weekend (Sat., Feb. 8, 2025) at UFC 312 (watch highlights).
But, it wasn’t because of anything that happened during the main event fight or the chaotic training camp.
Strickland did not like Nicksick’s appearance on Ariel Helwani’s show yesterday, in which the Xtreme Couture coach criticized his fighter’s performance and revealed their differing motivations at this stage of their relationship.
Nicksick wants to coach world champions and/or fighters who want to fight for championships, but he’d like to know if his fighters just want to compete for big paydays.
responded in a video that he posted on social media.
“Alright, guys, you keep tagging me about this whole Eric thing, God damn it,” Strickland said. I like Eric; he’s a friend of mine, and he’s gonna continue to be a friend of mine. Will he probably be in my corner? Probably not. We have so many great guys at Xtreme Couture. Nate [Pettit], Ray Sefo, we have so many savages that I would love to corner me.”
made it very clear in the past that he is a prizefighter, and money is one of his biggest motivations. However, since losing the title to du Plessis back at UFC 297, it has been his mission to get it back because of its value.
