Taira was the more telegraphed option, as he was conspicuously sitting next to Dana White at UFC 323 during Van's fight after defeating former champion Brandon Moreno. Taira holds an 18-1 record and would be the first Japanese champion in UFC history.

Former middleweight champ Sean Strickland blasted the UFC's fighter compensation, characterizing it as unfair and "predatory."

UFC president Dana White is defending Sean Strickland after the fighter’s controversial comments about Bad Bunny ’s Super Bowl halftime performance.

Anthony Hernandez didn't take too kindly to Sean Strickland 's method of trying to promote their fight.

UFC star Carlos Prates took to social media to call out an unnamed fighter to sign the contract for a potential title eliminator fight for the welterweight division.

Strickland slammed the UFC’s broadcasting partner, Paramount+, over gay characters in its adaptation of the video game Halo, while managing to insult trans women and describe gayness as a mental illness.

UFC Houston fighters made weight ahead of the event, confirming Sean Strickland vs. Anthony Hernandez as a five-round main event, with only one miss recorded. The UFC Houston weigh-in set Strickland at 185 pounds and Hernandez at 186,