So, let’s talk about Ian Garry. You know, the fighter? He’s got an interesting perspective on Sean Strickland, another big name in the UFC. Garry sympathizes with Strickland’s rough childhood, sure. But he doesn’t think that gives Strickland the right to mock other fighters and their families.
There’s some history between Garry and Strickland. It started when Strickland questioned Garry’s relationship with his wife, who’s 14 years older than him. Strickland called Garry some pretty nasty names leading up to UFC 296. They even had a confrontation at the UFC Performance Institute.
Garry talked about it on “The MMA Hour.” He said it was more of a glance than a stare-down. Strickland was shuffled into an elevator, snickering. Garry shouted something at him, he doesn’t even remember what. His body just went into fight mode. Then the elevator doors closed. Not much else to it, really.
Around the same time, Strickland was feuding with Dricus Du Plessis, his opponent for UFC 297. Du Plessis mentioned Strickland’s abusive childhood during a press conference. Strickland didn’t take it well. He attacked Du Plessis in the crowd at UFC 296 the next day.
Later, Strickland went on a podcast with comedian Theo Von. He opened up about his childhood trauma. It was an emotional interview. Strickland felt Du Plessis crossed a line with his trash talk. Garry noted the irony. He doesn’t think Strickland’s childhood trauma gives him a free pass to trash talk others.
Garry’s not interested in Strickland’s past. He doesn’t think it’s an excuse to project pain onto others. He thinks Strickland should seek help for his mental health. The UFC PI offers resources for that. Garry believes Strickland should talk about his trauma, express it, release it. Attacking others because of personal pain isn’t fair or excusable.
Garry was supposed to fight teammate Vicente Luque at UFC 296. But he got pneumonia and had to drop out. He’s now scheduled to fight Geoff Neal at UFC 298 on Feb. 17. And Strickland? He’s defending his title at UFC 297 on Jan. 20. Should be a good fight.