Jack Hermansson isn’t overlooking Sean Strickland at UFC Vegas 47, but the No. 6-ranked middleweight believes he is destined to dethrone Israel Adesanya and become the new middleweight king.
‘The Joker’ believes his grappling sets him apart from the rest of the division and is confident he would need just one takedown to finish ‘The Last Stylebender’ on the ground.
“Definitely, I see myself, without a doubt the best grappler in this division and that is why I’m also the biggest threat to Adesanya. I’m the person that is going to dethrone him,” Hermansson told BJPenn.com ahead of tonight’s UFC Vegas 47 matchup with Strickland.
“With a guy like Adesanya, I probably just need one takedown and it will be really hard for him to survive. Even if I end up on the bottom, I’m always dangerous, it doesn’t matter who you are, if you are on the ground with me you are in big trouble.”
Hermansson is hoping a win over Strickland will elevate him into title contention and set up a possible title fight against Adesanya, who is scheduled to rematch Robert Whittaker next Saturday at UFC 271.
“I’m definitely looking to put myself in a position to challenge for the title. We have Cannonier who fought Whittaker and Brunson has already fought Adesanya,” Hermansson said. “Who knows, with a dominant win over Strickland, I may just line up (for the title shot).”
UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs. Strickland takes place tonight, Feb. 5 at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. Check out the Bloody Elbow staff predictions for tonight’s event here.