Luke Rockhold Calls Out Sean Strickland: 'He's a Fraud!

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold has publicly criticized Sean Strickland, calling him a fraud and accusing him of putting on boring fights. This animosity comes after Rockhold's recent knockout victory over Joe Schilling at Karate Combat 45 in late April, marking his first win since 2017.

The 39-year-old Rockhold, who retired after a loss to Paulo Costa in 2022 following three consecutive UFC defeats, appears ready for a comeback. Earlier this week, he called out Sean Strickland for a fight. Strickland, also known as ‘Tarzan,’ recently secured a split-decision win over Paulo Costa at UFC 302.

Rockhold and Strickland share a history as former training partners and were scheduled to fight at UFC 268 in November 2021. However, Rockhold withdrew due to an injury, leading to lingering bad blood between the two.

In response to Rockhold’s callout, Strickland issued a scathing reply on social media. Rockhold fired back in an interview with The Schmo, labeling Strickland as a fake fighter who talks about fighting to the death but fails to engage in the cage.

“I’m not a fan of him,” Rockhold said. “He just puts on the most boring fights of all time, he’s a fake, a fraud. I think he’s acting up there. I’ve heard he’s got social media managers telling him what to do and what to say. Let’s try to be a little more real, boy!”

Rockhold didn’t hold back, further criticizing Strickland’s fighting style and persona.

“Sean acts like he’s all ‘I’ll fight to the death!’ and then puts on this hillbilly, right-wing attitude when he’s really just a fraud. He’s not going to fight to the death. He puts it on the line for the last five seconds of every fight, walking around like a nutcracker kicking and punching like an idiot.”

As tensions escalate, fans eagerly await to see if a matchup between Rockhold and Strickland will be confirmed, promising a clash fueled by deep-seated rivalry and personal disdain.