Sean Strickland’s brutal weight cut left him barely able to talk — UFC made him do media anyway (Video)

UFC middleweight contender Sean Strickland is participating in his first championship title fight this weekend in Sydney, taking on reigning 185-pound kingpin Israel Adesanya in the UFC 293 pay-per-view (PPV) main event from inside Qudos Bank Arena.

That required “Tarzan” to hit the championship weight for the first time in his middleweight career; meaning, no one-pound allowance typically afforded in non-title fights. Strickland needed to be 185 pounds (or less) and clocked in 184.9 at today’s early weigh ins.

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MASSIVE MIDDLEWEIGHT MATCH! Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) makes its highly anticipated return to Sydney, Australia, for the first time in five years on Sat., Sept. 9, 2023, with a 185-pound world title fight inside Qudos Bank Arena. In the ESPN+-streamed pay-per-view (PPV) main event, Middleweight roost-ruler, Israel Adesanya, plans to silence No. 5-seeded contender, Sean Strickland. In UFC 293’s hard-hitting Heavyweight co-main event, No-6-ranked fan favorite, Tai Tuivasa, locks horns with towering Russian, Alexander Volkov (No. 8).

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The weight cut left a languid Strickland barely able to talk.

“Sorry guys, this extra pound kinda sucks,” the former welterweight told the hosts of today’s UFC 293 weigh ins show. “It’s a little rough, you guys, that championship weight. That extra pound ... that extra pound kinda sucked. I’m gonna go try to kill the Chinaman.”

Daniel Cormier and Laura Sanko were concerned enough for Strickland’s health that neither host asked “Tarzan” a question about his upcoming fight. UFC fans on Twitter lambasted the promotion’s decision to stage interviews directly after the UFC 293 weigh ins.

—I don’t know which is worse for the fighter… getting interviewed after a crazy weight cut or getting interviewed after being KOed. Both of them should be a no no.

—Why would you interview someone straight after a hard weight cut…… poor.

—Shoutout DC & Laura cutting (no pun intended) that interview early. TF is the ESPN media team scheduling interviews then anyway?

—Getting interviewed while being severely dehydrated should be illegal bro barely even knows where he is.

—Jet lagged, drawn out, still sweating, can’t even pick his head up. He might not even make it to the cage.

Adesanya, no stranger to middleweight title fights, tipped the scale at 184.8.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 293 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ESPNN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, followed by the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 293: “Adesanya vs. Strickalnd” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. For the updated and finalized UFC 293 fight card and ESPN+ lineup click here.