UFC fighter Sean Strickland showed up to promote his fight this weekend and decided the best marketing strategy was to go on a vulgar, sexist tirade. At a Wednesday press gathering, he took a question about Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano’s upcoming match and somehow turned it into a rambling mess that included childhood masturbation confessions, bizarre critiques of Paramount+, and blanket statements dismissing women’s sports entirely.
The whole thing was uncomfortable to watch, and not in the way that generates buzz. It was the kind of uncomfortable that makes you wonder how we got here and why this is still happening in professional sports.
The Rant That Didn’t Need to Happen
Strickland started by attacking Paramount+ for “ruining” the Halo show by making it “gay.” Then he pivoted to the Rousey-Carano match, speculating whether they’d be “half naked” to make it watchable. He praised Rousey’s fighting ability but immediately undercut it by admitting he masturbated to footage of her when he was 12 years old. This was a press conference. People were recording.
He then insisted that nobody cares about women’s sports, claimed the weakest man at the event could beat Amanda Nunes, and suggested putting oil on female fighters to draw interest.
The punchline? After all that, Strickland wanted everyone to know there’s “nothing wrong with women.” His proof? They cook and clean. Oh, and he appreciated that they don’t commit crimes at high rates, which is why he’s grateful he didn’t have to go to prison.
When “Rage Baited” Becomes an Excuse
By Thursday, Strickland was walking it back. A reporter had “rage baited” him, he claimed. He also doubled down on his Paramount+ grievance, insisting the platform’s Star Trek and Halo shows failed because they included strong female characters and LGBTQ+ representation.
This is the standard playbook now. Say something offensive, get called out, claim you were just joking or provoked. The problem is that this wasn’t some off-the-cuff comment at a bar. This was a professional athlete at an official UFC event, speaking to media. There’s a difference between being provocative and being unprofessional.
The Bigger Picture
What’s frustrating about this whole situation is that it reveals something deeper about how certain corners of sports culture still operate. We’re supposed to believe that in 2026, a fighter can’t promote a match without resorting to sexism as his content strategy. There are plenty of ways to generate headlines without recycling Stone Age attitudes about women.
The entertainment industry loves a character. It loves edge. But there’s a difference between being edgy and being a jerk. Strickland walked right past that line and kept going.
His opponent Anthony Hernandez wasn’t impressed, telling a podcast that he plans to “fucking torture” Strickland in the cage this weekend. At least that’s fighting talk that stays in the ring.
The real question isn’t whether Strickland crossed a line. He obviously did. The question is whether enough people in sports and media will stop treating this kind of behavior as harmless entertainment or just someone being “real.” Because every time we excuse it, we’re telling the next athlete that this is acceptable. And it’s not.
