MMA Preview – Jack Hermansson vs Sean Strickland at UFC Fight Night 200
JACK HERMANSSON VS SEAN STRICKLAND FACTS
When is UFC Fight Night 200? Saturday 5th February, 2022 - 22:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC Fight Night 200? UFC APEX, Enterprise, Nevada (US)
Where can I get tickets for UFC Fight Night 200? Click here for the latest ticket information for UFC events
What channel is UFC Fight Night 200 on? BT Sport 2
Where can I stream UFC Fight Night 200? BT Sport subscribers can stream the fight online via the BT Sport website
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
JACK HERMANSSON VS SEAN STRICKLAND LOWDOWN
Jack Hermansson (22-6) walks into 2022 with a headline slot after only fighting once last year. It was a brilliant performance outclassing Edmen Shahbazyan in response to getting outclassed himself by Marvin Vettori (2020) in a unanimous decision. That made it 2-2 in his last four and he is eager for another vintage performance like when he heel hooked Kelvin Gastelum (2020) in the first round. That came after the biggest setback of his career when Jared Cannonier (2019) knocked him out snapping an impressive four-fight win streak. Now, he needs to build another streak to get close to a title shot.
Sean Strickland (24-3) headlines his second UFC Fight Night in a row which is understandable based on his recent performances. Since his recovery after that motorbike accident in 2018, Strickland has found the form of his life helped by the decision to move up to middleweight. He earnt a unanimous decision over Jack Marshman (2020), TKO’d Brendan Allen (2020) and went on to earn two more excellent unanimous decisions over Krzysztof Jotko (2021) and Uriah Hall (2021).
JACK HERMANSSON VS SEAN STRICKLAND PREDICTION
Strickland has looked superb in recent fights and Hermansson represents his toughest challenge at middleweight, so this is a great test of his title credentials. His path to victory is on the feet where he is rock solid, and he can win this by walking Hermansson down and keeping up a steady flow of strikes to make him wilt with pressure.
Hermansson has a completely contrasting style on the feet with very unorthodox movement and angles of striking. He will have to be unpredictable to get any success on the feet against Strickland and we expect him to utilize that style to try and seal a takedown and get the fight to the floor.
Strickland had good ground skills but is not on Hermansson’s level, so if Strickland lands on his back, you have to back Hermansson. However, the key stat here is Strickland’s 82% takedown defence which includes fights against the likes of Kamaru Usman and Court McGee.
We feel, Strickland’s grappling defence will win him this fight. He has never been submitted but if Hermansson can rock him and create a scramble, he has every chance of puncing on his ‘Jokertine’, snatching a leg or raining down ground-and-pound.
That said, the majority of this fight is likely to play out on the feet where we expect Strickland to defend the takedown attempts, walk Hermansson down, piercing the guard with his jab and basic combinations to win more rounds.
Prediction: Strickland via Decision - CLICK HERE FOR PARIMATCH'S WELCOME OFFER (BET £5, GET £30 IN BONUSES!)
Value Bet: Hermansson via Submission
