Sean Strickland open to leaving UFC middleweight title

Strickland considers light heavyweight move amid UFC pay dispute

UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland has stated that he would be open to giving up his UFC title in order to move up to light heavyweight.

The current titleholder is currently being linked to a bout against his rival Nassourdine Imavov, but a dispute over financial terms is standing in the way. This has even gone so far that Sean Strickland has publicly commented several times on the UFC’s offers being too low.

Apparently, Sean Strickland has had enough, and wrote on social media:

"Yeah man I wouldn't even care to give up my belt and go to 205. Easier cut…“

The question now is how the UFC will react to this move. He’s not the only one who sometimes feels underappreciated. The fact that he’s even willing to give up his title just to show the UFC a thing or two is still a very strong statement. Ultimately, though, it’s the fans who end up suffering a little as a result. Sean Strickland is one of the best MMA fighters in the world, and it’s about time he got to prove his worth in the Octagon. If the UFC is serious about keeping him happy, they should try to keep him in the middleweight division for as long as possible. The only question is whether they’re able to make a fair offer that satisfies everyone. What do you guys think?

I don’t think he’ll necessarily do it, especially not right away. I think he wanted to send a message first to get the UFC to start thinking about it. I’m curious to see if they can come up with a fair offer now, because otherwise the situation could get serious.