In today’s MMA news, Sean Strickland has recalled the conversation he had with Israel Adesanya after he beat the latter to become the UFC middleweight champion of the world.

Strickland-Adesanya

The American shocked the world to win via a unanimous decision, as he walked down Izzy to get the win, which was accompanied by him dropping the former world champion towards the end of the first round.

The result was even more telling in light of Adesanya’s fighting talk where he vowed to make things ‘look easy.’  In response, there were suggestions that there could be a rematch.

Although that was the case, there is nothing to indicate that this will occur. Adesanya has since then requested that his aim is to only fight for ‘fun,’ removing the desire to get his belt back. As such, the following comments were telling.

Strickland’s Comments

"It was so awkward. So, you guys don’t know this, like after fights, there’s a lot of showmanship in fighting, you know, ‘go f—k you, f—k you, f—k me.’ Usually, after fights — win or lose — there is this slight ‘Come to Jesus’ moment where, like, dude, it could have been me, but it wasn’t. Here’s a handshake onto the next one. Maybe we get a rematch … whatever.

"Anyway, he says, ‘you talked about my family. I would never do that. I would never do that.’ He looks at me, and he’s like, ‘I would never make fun of your family.’ And I’m like, ‘Izzy, I don’t know your family, bro.’ I don’t know if you have siblings. I don’t know f—k about you. This is after the fight. He starts pointing at his neck, and he’s like my f—king dog man, my dog.’ Bottom line, Izzy, dude, I think the guy needs some help," Strickland

The defeat ultimately has left Adesanya with a lot to ponder moving forward. A bout with Dricus Du Plessis had been teased before the fight, which has been ruled out for now since the latter is keen on facing Strickland.

And with Alex Pereira no longer interested in having a trilogy, since Izzy no longer holds a belt, where does Adesanya take his career now?

Diaz On Paul

Meanwhile, Nate Diaz has called for a rematch against Jake Paul in boxing with a view to having a trilogy fight in MMA.

Diaz came out second best to Paul via a unanimous decision on his boxing debut. Although the MMA fighter was dropped in the fifth round, Diaz managed to last the distance.

Thereafter, Paul offered the fighter $10 million in the expectation that their rematch would occur in MMA inside the PFL. As of now, the offer has not been taken as Diaz considers his options moving forward.

Nate has expressed a desire to return to the UFC at some point following his win over Tony Ferguson in 2022. But for now, there is a desire to run things back with Paul.

"Your full of s**t I didn’t ask for s**t I’ll fight u tomorrow n Mma the problem is u suck and I don’t work for pussy. FL dumbass u do. Rematch is in boxing trilogy is in Mma u need time to train anyway u suck New Year’s Eve is good," Diaz stated

Paul Responds

Nevertheless, Paul has questioned the motives behind Diaz’s comments and actions. He accused the latter of making unrealistic demands in order to prevent an MMA fight from going ahead.

While it is true to say that Diaz does have a massive fanbase, Paul is considered the A-side, giving him the right to call the major shots. With that being said, the ‘Problem Child’ did not hold back.

"I think it’s too big of a risk, right? 10 million dollars but if he loses to me, it’s legacy, he’s gonna get made fun of. He felt the power. I don’t think he can take me down. It’s kind of a lose-lose situation for him. That’s why behind the scenes, on the business side of things, he’s making outrageous number claims and negotiations and wanting such unrealistic things. It’s like Nate is ducking me," Paul said