Daniel Cormier expects changes at Xtreme Couture following Sean Strickland’s UFC 312 loss

Daniel Cormier is expecting some changes for Xtreme Couture following Sean Strickland’s UFC 312 loss.

Strickland challenged Dricus du Plessis in a rematch for the UFC Middleweight Championship in Sydney, Australia in February. While their first encounter was competitive, Strickland had little to offer DDP in the rematch. Du Plessis was ahead of Strickland on the feet throughout the fight and even busted his nose.

Before du Plessis was awarded the unanimous decision win, fans and the UFC commentary team noticed some rough body language between Strickland and his coach Eric Nicksick. Post-fight comments from both men has led people to believe things aren’t so rosy between the two anymore, at least not on a professional level.

RELATED: CHAEL SONNEN DEFENDS SEAN STRICKLAND’S HEAD COACH FOLLOWING POST-UFC 312 COMMENTS

Daniel Cormier Talks Gym Changes After Sean Strickland Loss

In a new video posted on his YouTube channel, Daniel Cormier discussed Sean Strickland saying he’s likely done being coached by Eric Nicksick and how that can impact Xtreme Couture (h/t MMAMania.com).

“If that’s what the idea is supposed to be, I think we’re gonna be seeing more changes coming out of Xtreme Couture,” Cormier said. “And when you have more changes, it’s not the coach, guys. It’s not the coach. So I think Sean needs to be very careful in this sense. And Eric’s a great guy, so it might actually be okay. Eric might be a guy that says, ‘Okay Sean, you can work with other people.’ But I will tell you, in most instances, you don’t get to just X out the head coach and go about your business freely. It just doesn’t work like that.”

Nicksick recently told Ariel Helwani that his issue with Strickland was that his performance at UFC 312 wasn’t up to par with his standard. Nicksick said he’s trying to coach world champions, which is a comment Cormier didn’t like, as he knows coaches can’t have all of their fighters win world titles. There’s also the point that Strickland has actually captured UFC gold, but didn’t have a successful defense.