Sean Strickland shared that Francis Ngannou once asked him why he carries a weapon. Strickland responded by telling Ngannou he would find the reason if he looked in a mirror, implying Ngannou's imposing physical presence is motivation enough. The anecdote provides insight into Strickland's mindset regarding self-protection. Additional news in the same digest mentioned Carlos Prates and Jack Della Maddalena had their first face-off, with Prates appearing very large for the welterweight division. Shamil Gaziev reportedly weighed around 140kg despite competing at 120kg, with his fight in Australia allowing less recovery time than usual. Arman Tsarukyan revealed the UFC sent him an unexpected $42,000 bonus, possibly for social media work.
