Robert WhittakerChris Unger/Zuffa LLC
- Robert Whittaker
- Israel Adesanya
- Nassourdine Imavov
The ideal fight for Strickland would involve staying in the limelight. Losing to Du Plessis in two of his last three fights is going to make it tough for him to get back in the title picture.
If the UFC give him someone with no name recognition and he doesn’t win, it would pretty much end any chance of contending again. So targeting a big name or rising star would be the best-case scenario for Strickland as he tries to rebuild his resume.
Robert Whittaker would make a ton of sense. He is coming off a devastating loss himself. Khamzat Chimaev beat him with a face crank in the firs round of their UFC 308 fight. Getting the Aussie back in the cage against Strickland would give both fighters a chance at a bounce-back performance.
The thought process behind including Adesanya on this list is similar. Things are falling apart quickly for the former champion and it started with his loss to Strickland. Since then, he’s lost to Du Plessis and Nassourdine Imavov.
The last of those losses was by second-round TKO. Strickland isn’t likely to knock out Adesanya and it would give The Last Stylebender a chance to redeem himself and get back on the right track. This might be a good time for the rematch.
At the same time, Imavov would be a good matchup as well. If Chimaev wasn’t waiting then Imavov could probably parlay his win over Adesanya into a title shot. Instead, he has to wait. Strickland isn’t an easy out, but Tarzan would likely be a considerable underdog.
However, it might be Strickland’s best shot at staying relevant and in the mix.
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