Anthony Hernandez turned a racist insult from Sean Strickland into much more gas forward of the principle occasion of UFC Houston on February 21, 2026 at Toyota Heart.
Anthony Hernandez hits again at Sean Strickland’s ICE poster
The cycle additional accelerated in January when Strickland shared an edited sport poster on Instagram and X that confirmed him in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement uniform and Hernandez in a sombrero and poncho. Strickland didn’t embody a caption on Instagram, however wrote on “X”, “If you cannot giggle at this, you agree. Go away,” rejecting criticism from followers who felt the picture skewed towards anti-immigrant stereotypes. The publish rapidly drew backlash, with many arguing that turning Hernandez’s Mexican heritage into the punchline of a promotional gag crossed the road.
Hernandez, a first-generation Mexican-American, addressed the poster in an interview with the New York Put up Sports activities and made no secret of his displeasure. “Truthfully, I laughed once I noticed that. If that is what’s greatest in my head, it will be a fucking lengthy evening,” he mentioned. He then revealed why the picture struck a nerve. “It is a mess, yeah, I do not like seeing shit like that. I do not prefer it when my individuals undergo that, however that is shitty life and that is the truth. It is simply filth and a few individuals prefer to carry it out.”
Hernandez concluded with a warning to Strickland’s on-line persona. “I hope he retains that very same on-line power locked up in a cage as a result of I will fucking torture him.”
It provides rigidity to a matchup that already has actual stakes at middleweight. Strickland, a former champion, is returning for the primary time in additional than a 12 months after dropping a unanimous resolution to Doricas du Plessis in a title struggle at UFC 312 final February. Hernandez, who’s ranked within the prime tier at 185 kilos, is on an eight-fight profitable streak, together with a fourth-round submission of Roman Dolisez at UFC Vegas 109 final August.
The talk over heritage has been smoldering in current weeks. Earlier than the ICE poster got here out, Hernandez revealed that he needed to “bounce a number of hoops” with the UFC to exit underneath the Mexican flag, saying officers required him to seek out his grandparents’ beginning certificates to show his roots earlier than approving Mexican-themed gear.
“I am on an unimaginable eight-fight profitable streak. There is no particular therapy right here,” he instructed Ariel Helwani, emphasizing that regardless of being born and raised in the US, his heritage runs to Mexico. That have, and Strickland’s subsequent ICE-themed publish, turned what began as a regular contender into a private struggle for Hernandez. Hernandez will reply to the ridicule contained in the cage, not on social media.
