Sean Strickland hasn\u2019t fought in nearly a year.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s an unusual layoff for the former UFC Middleweight champion, who is typically quite active and fights multiple times per year. A suspension over summer probably didn\u2019t help<\/a> get him booked, and Strickland\u2019s last appearance was a title rematch versus Dricus du Plessis at UFC 312<\/a> in February 2025. Though their first bout was very competitive, the rematch was rather one-sided, as \u201cDDP\u201d won every round and also shattered the veteran\u2019s nose<\/a> late in the fight.<\/p>\n Unfortunately, that may not have been Strickland at his best, as he recently revealed the he suffered a major shoulder injury just before accepting the rematch. Why fight hurt? Strickland felt pressured to compete by the UFC, as the promotion doesn\u2019t take kindly to turned down offers<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cBefore the [Dricus du Plessis] fight, I was f\u2014king riding with Axell Hodges and I broke my shoulder,\u201d Strickland told Jon Bernard<\/a>. \u201cSo I was in Columbia getting stem cells in my shoulder and they hit me up for the fight. The thing with the UFC, you don\u2019t say no, they\u2019re our pimps. You don\u2019t say no to the master. I was back up into a corner taking that fight.<\/p>\n \u201cTaking this time off and letting my body heal has been amazing. The shoulder feels f\u2014king great. I do miss fighting and performing, but it\u2019s been nice to be a fat, lazy piece of s\u2014t for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n Lately, UFC title matchups are booked as much by convenience as merit. Cards need headliners, and that means worthy contenders can easily be passed up if they\u2019re unavailable on a specific date. In the case of Strickland, his title opportunity easily could have been handed over to Khamzat Chimaev<\/a> if he didn\u2019t jump at the opportunity last February.<\/p>\n To see who else is fighting at UFC Houston click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n