Popular social media influencer Nick Nayersina narrowly avoided having his skull hammered by Sean Strickland. The American influencer’s mistake of getting into a sparring session with the UFC star subjected him to his aforementioned fate.
Strickland is known for his notorious sparring sessions with internet personalities and has been criticized before for going too far.
Sean Strickland Made Nick Nayersina Fear for His Life
Sean Strickland prefers going all-out in several life matters, including riding motorcycles and recreational shooting practices. Besides his in-the-Octagon prowess, the California native is also known in the UFC community for his intense sparring sessions,
Strickland’s coach, Eric Nicksick, has repeatedly detailed how he prefers hard sparring sessions regardless of whether or not he fights in the near future.
Strickland has sparred with several notable fighters from the UFC and other promotions. The former UFC Light Heavyweight champion Alex Pereira has also cornered Strickland for a few of his fights and is one of his occasional sparring partners.
However, Strickland’s style proves too much if he gets into the cage to face someone not professionally trained in combat sports. His viral sparring session with the social media influencer Sneako earned him harsh criticism from the MMA community.
Despite the previous backlash, Strickland recently accepted Nick Nayersina’s offer to spar and did not pull any punches. “Tarzan” decided to maintain his usual ruthless approach while sparring with Nayersina, who, like Sneako, has no experience in professional fighting.
Strickland was caught on camera hammering the 29-year-old with all his power, while Nayersina ran around to defend himself.
The former UFC Middleweight Champion grabbed hold of Nayersina at a point and tried to elbow his head. He then landed a knee, which was defended by the YouTuber’s guard.
The session lasted a few more seconds, as Nayersina dropped to the floor after absorbing one of Strickland’s subsequent right hooks and repeatedly yelled, “I quit.”
Strickland sarcastically appreciated Nayersina’s approach to “run,” adding an ice-cold threat as a consequence if he hadn’t. Strickland said, “The best thing you did was run, because if you had stayed there, I was going to try to shatter your skull with an elbow.”
Nayersina indignantly exclaimed, “I could’ve been dead!”
Sean Strickland said he was about to shatter YouTuber Nick Nayersina’s skull with an elbow if he didn’t quit 😅 pic.twitter.com/ieIwzU4LVM
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) April 23, 2025
Strickland once again got slammed on the internet by fans for his actions.
Strickland resorted to a similarly vicious approach for his infamous sparring session with Sneako in February 2024. The 26-year-old offered little resistance to Strickland’s strikes. Like Nayersina, he ran away to defend himself.
However, Strickland unleashed a barrage of strikes after he caught hold of him and showed no signs of stopping despite three towels being thrown from Sneako’s corner. In the end, the other team members had to intervene to stop his beatdown, which left the social media influencer bleeding profusely from his nose.