Chris Weidman Wants To Fight Sean Strickland Next

Chris Weidman got a long awaited win under his belt last month against Bruno Silva and now he’s calling for a much higher profile fight against another former middleweight champion, Sean Strickland.

“I think I want a big name,” Weidman said on Michael Bisping’s podcast regarding his next fight. “I went with Bruno Silva – not a big name. I think it’s time to step up and have a fun fight that people want to see and people know me and him.

“Bruno Silva, they didn’t really know his name, and I had no right to pick my opponent. Not that I’m really going to be able to pick my opponents, but if it was up to me, I’d have a bigger name, a fight that means a little bit more with a win.”

Bisping himself had previously suggested Strickland, and that seems to fit right in line with Weidman’s thinking.

“I would love that fight,” Weidman said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for Strickland. I think it would be a fun buildup. I think he would bring me out of being such a nice guy. We could trash talk a little bit, have some fun. I would love that fight. I like his style. I like that he pushes the pace. I like to push the pace. He likes to get guys tired, so I’d like to test myself against a guy like that.”

Truth be told though that’s a fight that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense right now.

The 33-year-old Strickland only just lost the middleweight title a few months ago and is still ranked as the division’s No.1 contender as he prepares to take on Paulo Costa in the co-main event of UFC 302 on June 1st.

Meanwhile, prior to his last fight the 39-year-old Weidman had lost 7 of his last 9 fights,  and though he did look better in his fight with Silva, his eventual victory was controversial due the fact he’d landed multiple eye-pokes along the way, including a double-eye-poke during the fight-ending sequence.

As such, even though he still has name value it feels like Weidman still has more to prove first before he’s a viable candidate to go up against a leading contender.

Ross Cole
Ross launched MMA Insight (previously FightOfTheNight.com) in 2009 as a way to channel his passion for the sport of mixed martial arts. He's since penned countless news stories and live fight reports along with dozens of feature articles as the lead writer for the site, reaching millions of fans in the process.