Eric Nicksick Details Pre-Fight Pep Talk with ‘Unsure’ Sean Strickland

Sean Strickland is one of the most polarizing fighters on the Ultimate Fighting Championship roster, as he is known for going on unhinged rants on a variety of sensitive topics.

However, even Strickland’s detractors couldn’t take away anything from his dominant title victory over Israel Adesanya at UFC 293.

Raised in an abusive home, “Tarzan” has been vocal about his inability to socialize and form trusting relationships with others. However, mixed martial arts seems to have altered his view on life and people in general.

The Xtreme Couture representative seemed uncharacteristically collected as he fought his way to victory against one of the best strikers of all time over 25 minutes.

While the win is a source of great pride for "Tarzan" and his team, for Strickland’s head coach, Eric Nicksick, the human aspect of the win is of special significance after having successfully channeled his fighter’s energy.

“Sean the fighter is one thing, but Sean the human being is different,” Nicksick said in a recent interview with The Schmo. “So as a coach it’s nice to be able to help kind of shepherd this guy in a position to where he realizes his full potential.”

While Strickland didn’t have much to lose going into the fight, which he earned with a small stroke of fate, the 32-year-old did get last-minute jitters. However, Strickland’s confidence was restored when he saw how much his coach believed in him. Nicksick shared what he told his athlete in the pre-fight pep talk.

“Something we said in the back before we walked out, he was just very, say, unsure,” Nicksick said. “Like I could feel his energy. And I looked at him and I said, ‘Hey bro, we’re gonna win this fight, and you gotta believe it as much as I do.’ After the fight he’s like, ‘Man I didn’t know, I didn’t believe it and then I saw how much you believe in me and it made me believe in myself.’”