Sean Strickland wants his next fight to be against former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad at middleweight!
Few fighters bring the same level of unfiltered energy as Sean Strickland. The former middleweight champion has never been one to hold his tongue, whether inside the octagon or on social media. His brash personality and fighting style have made him both a controversial figure and a fan favorite in the MMA community. Now finding himself at a crossroads after losing his championship belt, Strickland is looking for a fresh challenge to reignite his path back to title contention.
Meanwhile, Belal Muhammad has been on his own rollercoaster journey in the UFC’s welterweight division. After years of grinding through the ranks, Muhammad finally reached the pinnacle when he captured the welterweight championship. His methodical, wrestling-heavy approach earned him victories over top contenders, but his reign was short-lived. Just last weekend at UFC 315, Muhammad’s championship dreams were shattered when Jack Della Maddalena dethroned him in dramatic fashion. With both fighters coming off losses and their online beef simmering for months, the stage seems perfectly set for this rivalry to finally move from social media to the octagon.
Strickland isn’t letting his recent setbacks keep him quiet. Following his second defeat to Du Plessis earlier this year at UFC 312, he has been making waves both in and out of the cage. In a recent interview with Helen Yee, Strickland didn’t mince words when calling out Muhammad.
“Belal, you should finally sack up, dog. This is it, you can finally stack the f**k up, dude, all that s**t you talked, we can finally make it happen…You lost your belt, you kind of got f***d up, I got f***d up, we should make that fight happen, Belal. That would be a good one, right? You can come up to middleweight. He said he would (come up to middleweight). All that s**t he talked on Instagram like ‘I’m gonna come fight you, I’m gonna do this’.”
The timing couldn’t be better from Strickland’s perspective. Both fighters are coming off losses. Muhammad had previously hinted at potentially moving up to the middleweight division to chase another title.
For Muhammad, moving up from welterweight (170 pounds) to face a naturally bigger opponent like Strickland would present a serious challenge. Du Plessis is set to defend his middleweight title against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319. Strickland and Muhammad needing to rebuild after defeats, this grudge match might make perfect sense for both men’s careers.
(Image Credit: Joe Camporeale – Imagn Images)
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