Sean Strickland won the UFC middleweight title back in May and has not defended it since. On 9 October he told the promotion, in public, that he will not fight or sign any contract until his pay is sorted out.
What Strickland said about his UFC pay
The complaints started in September and turned into a stand-off this week. On 7 October, in a series of posts on X reported by MMA Junkie, Strickland wrote: "I gotta be honest unless things change with the UFC Im kinda over it. McGregor makes 30 million to fight for 30 second and they dont want to pay us a fraction of it."
He also floated a way out. "Contemplating just going to 205 knocking out my contract and scrapping with @jakepaul. That sounds fun," he wrote. He told one commenter he would not mind giving up the belt to do it, because 205 pounds is an easier cut than 185.
Two days later the tone hardened. "I will not fight or sign any contract until I get this figured out," he posted, according to MMA Fighting. "Hopefully we get it figured out soon."
How much does Sean Strickland make per fight
Nobody outside the two parties has seen the contract, so every figure is a report. A claim that spread on social media put him on $400,000 to show and $400,000 to win. Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie said on his YouTube channel that this number is false.
According to Bohn's sources, Strickland signed a new six-fight deal before the Khamzat Chimaev fight at UFC 328, was paid more than a million dollars for that fight and has five fights left on it. Bohn added that when a fighter signs a new deal ahead of a title fight, the money for the title fight and the first defences is usually agreed in advance.
That is the awkward part of the dispute. If the report is right, the terms Strickland objects to are terms he accepted a few months ago. His argument is not about what the paper says. It is about the gap between a champion's purse and the sums he quotes for Conor McGregor and for boxers.
Sean Strickland record and last five fights
The case he can make is on the scoreboard. Strickland is 35, holds a 31-7-0 record and is champion for the second time. He has won two in a row: a third-round knockout of Anthony Hernandez in February, then a split decision over Chimaev.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Method | Round |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 May 2026 | Khamzat Chimaev | Win | Decision (split) | 5 |
| 21 Feb 2026 | Anthony Hernandez | Win | KO (punches) | 3 |
| 9 Feb 2025 | Dricus Du Plessis | Loss | Decision (unanimous) | 5 |
| 1 Jun 2024 | Paulo Costa | Win | Decision (split) | 5 |
| 20 Jan 2024 | Dricus Du Plessis | Loss | Decision (split) | 5 |
He is a volume fighter who goes long. Of his 31 wins, 15 came by decision and 12 by knockout, and across 25 measured fights he lands 96.56 significant strikes per fight. Four of the five fights in the table went the full five rounds, which is the kind of workload a champion points to when he asks for more.
What happens next for the middleweight title
The expected challenger is Nassourdine Imavov, 17-4 according to MMA Junkie and on a run of five straight wins. The UFC has already set its remaining numbered main events for the year, ending with Charles Oliveira against Diego Lopes at UFC 335 in December, so MMA Junkie puts January as the earliest date for Strickland against Imavov. The two have met once. Strickland won a unanimous decision over five rounds in January 2023, in a fight held at light heavyweight.
Not everyone around the UFC is against him. Daniel Cormier said he hopes Strickland resolves the dispute and does not blame him for wanting more money for a risky rematch as his first defence, MMA Junkie reported.
Strickland has named three routes: a better deal at 185 pounds, a move to 205 to run out the contract, or no fights at all. Until one of them is chosen, the middleweight belt has no date attached, and Imavov, who last fought in September 2025, keeps waiting.
In this story
This article was generated with AI and may contain errors.