Sean Strickland Eyes Jake Paul Fight amid UFC Contract Concerns, Boxing Star Responds

UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland suggested a potential fight with Jake Paul after expressing concerns regarding his current UFC deal.

"I gotta be honest unless things change with the UFC Im kinda over it," Strickland wrote in a Wednesday post on X. "McGregor makes 30 million to fight for 30 second and they dont want to pay us a fraction of it. Contemplating just going to 205 knocking out my contract and scrapping with @jakepaul. That sounds fun."

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Strickland also explained that "the thought of just giving up my belt going to 205 and speed running my contract to fight Jake and make what these guys are making sounds pretty damn appealing" in a separate post on X.

Paul appeared to respond Strickland on social media, instructing him to contact his Most Valuable Promotions to set up a fight.

After Strickland defeated Khamzat Chimaev to become a two-time middleweight champion at UFC 328 in June, he confirmed that he planned to defend his title against Nassourdine Imavov.

Ahead of UFC 335, Strickland revealed that he was in negotiations to fight Imavov and was "discussing pay" on Sept. 27.

Charles Oliveira's clash with Diego Lopes for the BMF title was eventually announced as the main event of UFC 335 on Saturday, while Strickland wasn't on the card.

Strickland now appears to be considering a move to join MVP, as Paul's promotion has already brought in former UFC fighters such as Francis Ngannou and Nate Diaz.

Paul owns a 12-2 record in his professional boxing career, although he suffered a sixth-round knockout loss to Anthony Joshua in his last fight in Dec. 2025.