American MMA fighter Sean Strickland has landed himself in hot water ahead of his headline match with Israel Adesanya this Sunday, after punching a UFC fan in the stomach.
Speaking to presenter and TikTok star Jon-Bernard Kairouz Strickland said, "This guy comes up to me, shakes my hand, and says some shit to me like 'Izzy is gonna fuck you up.'
"And right when he said it I just fuckin' boom, I just hit him [right] in the gut, took a couple steps back and walked away."
Strickland also menitoned it was difficult for him to get into the country because of his history of "very minor" assaults. "The ironic thing is that it was so hard for me to get into this country, and I've been here for two days and I've already committed an assault."
He told Fox Sports, "If I see the guy again, man, no problems … I'll thank him for not pressing charges."
The American is a polarising figure and known ex-white supremacist. He has made controversial statements around race and women in the past.
Strickland wil go head-to-head with UFC juggernaut Israel Adesanya on Sunday at Sydney's Qudos Bank Arena. In the last few months, he has levelled racist and charged remarks at the Nigerian-born fighter.
One such instance occured at a pre-fight press conference for UFC Vegas 76 in June this year. Strickland said of Adesanya, who spent time training in China many years ago, "This fucking clown, this loser. They need to revoke your black card.
"I don’t even look at you like a black man. I look at you like the fucking Chinese."
Last Sunday, Strickland took to social media site X to share some thoughts on Australia.
He said, "I'm in Sydney and I thought I'm going to be surrounded by dirty liberalS. Gay and trans flags everywhere... Literally zero.. maybe America is the problem lmao!"
