Sean Strickland’s trainer again praises Paulo Borrachinha before UFC 302: ‘We can’t underestimate’

Former middleweight champion (up to 83.9 kg), Sean Strickland sought, over the last few months, an immediate revenge against Dricus Du Plessisfor whom he was defeated in a split decision by the judges and lost the belt in the UFC 297, in January. Unsuccessful in the endeavor, the North American will, instead, face Paulo Borrachinha at UFC 302, on June 1st.

In a recent interview with ‘MMA Fighting’, Eric Nicksick, Strickland’s main coach at Xtreme Couture, stated that he was not bothered by the fact that his pupil was facing someone below him in the rankings and once again praised Borrachinha.

“I was completely fine with it. I think Paulo Costa is always a dangerous threat in the division and deserves a fight of this size. I thought he looked good against Whittaker. I don’t think he won the fight, but I was truly impressed with his performance. Everything else that was scheduled for us went wrong. He is the opponent who was available and willing to fight”, said the coach.

In Nicksick’s opinion, although Borrachinha is below Strickland in the rankings, a victory over the Brazilian should be enough to fight for the category belt again.

“We are one victory away from a new title fight, so it is very important not to underestimate Paulo Costa. He is a very dangerous opponent and we need to go in there and do our duty,” he concluded.

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