According to Sean Strickland’s head coach, not everybody had a positive reaction to the news that UFC light heavyweight champ, and past Strickland opponent Alex Pereira will be in the corner for the main event of UFC 312.

Light heavyweight champion Pereira will be in Strickland’s (29-6 MMA, 16-6 UFC) corner when he challenges middleweight champion Du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC) in the Feb. 8 main event at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney ( ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, ESPN+).

UFC 312 is next up on the MMA calendar and will feature a title rematch, highly anticipated or not, between middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis and former champion Sean Strickland. The action goes down Saturday inside Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.

UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira will be in Sean Strickland's corner for his upcoming middleweight title rematch against Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 312.