Former UFC Middleweight Champion Sean Strickland has revealed a surprise retirement plan after losing his title to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 297.
Strickland was stripped of his middleweight championship in his first title defense on January 20, where after five grueling rounds in the octagon, Du Plessis walked out on top as the new belt holder.
Strickland held the crown for only a brief amount of time, taking the middleweight championship from Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 back in September 2023.
With the outcome of the head-to-head with Du Plessis ultimately coming down to the judge’s decision, there’s no doubt Strickland will be gunning to take the title back at some point. However, the 32-year-old MMA star has still revealed a shocking retirement plan.
Sean Strickland lays out retirement plan after UFC
Strickland doesn’t anticipate stepping down from fighting anytime soon. But, it appears the UFC star does have a retirement plan in mind for when the time comes. In a post on Twitter/X on January 23, he revealed intentions to get into a public office job when he’s done going blow-for-blow in the cage.
“After I’m done fighting in a few years and I’m sitting on a big pile of money I probably will run for some public office position,” he wrote. “I’ll never win but I’d rather do something I care about instead of starting a CBD company lmao.”
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After I'm done fighting in a few years and I'm sitting on a big pile of money I probably will run for some public office position… ill never win but I'd rather do something I care about instead of starting a CBD company lmao
— Sean Strickland (@SStricklandMMA) January 23, 2024
In another post, he added: “After MMA…. I have a lot more wars in me… Until then I’ll just be speaking for you guys in the cage.”
After MMA…. I have a lot more wars in me… Until then I'll just be speaking for you guys in the cage. https://t.co/IWXeMTt5GE
— Sean Strickland (@SStricklandMMA) January 23, 2024
Regardless, a rematch fight with Du Plessis will certainly be on everybody’s radar, especially given their feud before and even after their bout.
Before the fight, Strickland threatened he’d ‘stab’ his opponent at the weigh-ins if Du Plessis joked about his childhood abuse again — which kicked off a heated altercation in the crowd UFC 296.
Since their fight on January 20, the two UFC middleweight stars have already fired shots at each other, sparking anticipation among fans to see them fight again.