'Idiots like Sean Strickland' hold on to the nostalgia of being a UFC fighter - Luke Rockhold urges "real fighters" to leave the UFC

Luke Rockhold is no longer a UFC fighter. That, however, doesn't mean that the former middleweight champion is no longer a fighter. After a competitive but ultimately deflating loss to Paulo Costa at UFC 278, the Californian announced his retirement from mixed martial arts.

Not long after, he walked back on his retirement, instead negotiating his release with the UFC. In the 120th episode of Just Scrap Radio, Rockhold lambasted the UFC and claimed that fighters should leave the promotion due to the unfair revenue split.

Rockhold's brutal tirade against the UFC begins at the 6:10 minute mark of the video.

"He further asserted that fighters only continue to fight under the UFC banner simply for the label of being a UFC fighter. They're a $12 billion company now and they're still, like, suppressing everybody, putting them in sh*tty hotels, and paying them $50,000 bonuses. It's like, come on, dog. It's like, anybody smart is going to get out of that game and not just want to be a b*tch and be like a 'UFC fighter,' and attack that."

Luke Rockhold specifically referenced surging middleweight contender Sean Strickland, describing him as an idiot for continuing to compete for the promotion.

"You know, try to use their platform to build something. You know, cause these people just hold onto the nostalgia of being a UFC fighter like idiots like Sean Strickland, who just, will be a dog slave for the rest of his life."

Luke Rockhold is scheduled to step inside the bare-knuckle boxing ring at BKFC 41 on Saturday. His opponent is former UFC welterweight power-puncher Mike Perry.

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Luke Rockhold's losing streak in the UFC

At one point in time, Luke Rockhold looked as if he was primed for a long reign as the UFC middleweight champion. After he dethroned Chris Weidman to hand the All-American wrestler his first-ever career loss, the AKA standout seemed like he had every tool needed to maintain a stranglehold on the divisional title.

Instead, the Californian subsequently suffered a stunning upset via knockout against Michael Bisping at UFC 199 in his first title defense. While he bounced back with a TKO win against David Branch, it was not a sign of things to come. He suffered a brutal knockout loss against Yoel Romero.

His subsequent light heavyweight debut was disastrous as he was on the receiving end of yet another KO, this time by Jan Błachowicz. While he avoided a knockout loss upon his return to middleweight, he still lost to Paulo Costa, which left him with a three-fight losing streak he is yet to snap.