This month top 10 contenders Jack Hermansson and Sean Strickland will headline this crucial middleweight fight. Only one position separates the two, with Hermansson ranked #6 and Strickland sitting at #7. Hermansson is coming off a win against Edmen Shahbazyan, while Strickland looks to dominate and continue to ride his five win streak. Which of the two will come out on top?
The Joker (Hermansson) enters the Octagon with a unanimous decision win against Shahbazyan, along with alternating wins and losses during his previous matches. He took out Fight of the Night against Marvin Vettori, but didn’t bag the win.
Recently in November Hermansson squared off against UFC welterweight contender, Khamzat Chimaev in a freestyle boxing match. He was defeated by the Russian-born Swedish star, which involved two three-minute rounds.
Can the Joker take down Strickland and start a win streak?
Meanwhile Strickland is closely chasing Hermansson’s tail, with bragging rights to five straight wins. He looks to make this match his sixth consecutive win. To date, Tarzan (Strickland) has swung his way into the win column, defeating Uriah Hall, Kryzysztof Jotko, Brendan Allen, Jack Marshman and Nordine Taleb. His wins have been via unanimous decision or killer knockouts.
Strickland is confident that he can beat Hermansson, he told MMA Junkie,
“I’m a way better grappler than Jack is. “I think it’s going to be a kickboxing match. I think we’re going to stand and bang. Obviously it’s a fight, anything happens, but like the fourth round I want to take his soul. I want to take everything from him.”
Will Strickland put his money where his mouth is and make it six straight wins?