Raquel Pennington had a rocky story to UFC title glory. After losing her first shot at the title to Amanda Nunes in devastating fashion, Pennington comfortably won against Mayra Bueno Silva at UFC 297. In the main event of UFC 297, Sean Strickland was defeated by Dricus du Plessis via split decision in the middleweight title fight.
Strickland came under controversy due to his anti-trans and anti-gay rhetoric preluding UFC 297. Pennington, an openly gay athlete, married to UFC strawweight Tecia Torres, was not a fan of Strickland’s point of view.
Raquel Pennington slams Sean Strickland
Raquel Pennington was interviewed by Ariel Helwani on the MMA Hour, where she shared her opinion on Sean Strickland’s homophobic remarks. Pennington disclosed that she was unfazed by Strickland’s comments but expressed her disapproval, especially regarding his statements about women.
“I just think it was disgusting on his part to even be concerned about us as human beings and our lifestyle, and just the comments he was making,” said Raquel Pennington of what she felt about Sean Strickland.
“You know, at the end of the day, MMA has grown a ton. The women are here, we’re here to stay, the divisions are growing, you have tons of upcoming talent,” Pennington further added.
“So, to criticize female athletes, I just don’t agree with any of that,” Pennington criticized Strickland for his disparaging remarks about female athletes. She further disclosed that UFC CEO Dana White and UFC CBO checked in with her both before and after the contentious UFC 297 pre-fight press conference.
Raquel already has her next opponent lined up, Juliana Pena, who was initially set to face Pennington at UFC 297. However, Pena had to withdraw due to injury, leading to Mayra Bueno Silva stepping in to contend for the vacant bantamweight title.
Sean Strickland’s offensive remarks on women
Sean Strickland, the poster boy of American conservatism in the UFC, has often come at odds with the liberal and woke media for his controversial remarks. Strickland has had a tough childhood due to his parent’s substance abuse issues. He also suffered domestic violence at the hands of his father.
Strickland has long been an advocate of women remaining at home cooking and caring for their children and their husbands. Moreover, he also wants men in every household in the U.S.A. to have their firearms to defend their family. Interestingly, Strickland has his clothing merchandise where his controversial words are inscribed.
Even though Sean has made misogynistic remarks, he has long been closely associated with popular female MMA journalists like Helen Yee and Nina Marie Daniele. Nonetheless, he has been attacked by mainstream liberal media for his remarks but has received support from conservative outlets.
Strickland is looking to get a rematch with Dricus du Plessis as he felt he was robbed of a victory by the judges and also due to an inadvertent headbutt by DDP. Strickland and du Plessis have been going at each other since UFC 297 but UFC CEO Dana White does not have any plans to have an immediate rematch.
What do you think of Raquel Penningotn’s remarks about Sean Strickland? Leave your thoughts below!
