Sean
Strickland thinks Khalil
Rountree Jr. has nothing to offer Alex
Pereira in their upcoming title fight.
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Pereira will defend his light heavyweight title against Rountree in
the main event at UFC 307
on Oct. 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Strickland
is currently in Utah, helping his former foe train for his upcoming
fight.
Strickland suffered a knockout loss against “Poatan” in 2022 and
has since repeatedly acknowledged the Brazilian’s power and
skillset. The former foes have trained together on multiple
occasions. The former middleweight champ also has his own history
with Rountree, having trained together in the past. Strickland
first went off on Rountree for an emotional post-fight interview in
2022, calling the light heavyweight contender “a special needs
adult.” Strickland has recently renewed his onslaught on Rountree
leading up to UFC 307, recalling alleged instances from their past
encounters.
Pereira vs. Rountree Jr. Saturday at 10 ET on ESPN+. Order
Now!
Strickland also doesn’t see Rountree getting his hand raised
against Pereira at UFC 307. Rountree is coming off a vicious
technical knockout win over Anthony
Smith in December 2023, which was his fourth finish in a
five-fight winning streak. However, Strickland doesn’t believe
Rountree has the skillset to do the same to Pereira. Strickland
predicts the champ will have an easy night at the office defending
his crown.
“I just can’t see Khalil [Rountree] pulling it off… I remember
watching him fight Anthony
Smith, like I just can’t see it happening [with Pereira],”
Strickland recently told Helen Yee. “I don’t think
[Rountree] has the tools in the toolbox to beat Alex. He’s not
knocking him out, he’s not outstriking him, he’s not outwrestling
him. I think Alex is gonna make easy work of this fight.”
Pereira won the 205-pound title with a TKO win over Jiri
Prochazka last year and has since defended it twice, against
Jamahal
Hill and in a rematch against “BJP.” Pereira has expressed
interest in moving down to middleweight to challenge Dricus Du
Plessis for the title, regardless of the outcome of his bout
against Rountree.