Sean Strickland ready to ‘put his money’ on 5’7 UFC champion to beat NFL linebackers 

Sean Strickland is one of the most vocal and polarizing figures in MMA. The UFC middleweight is well-known for drawing attention over his outlandish, cartoonishly brash persona and controversial opinions on anything and everything, from gun violence to Ronda Rousey's reaction to losing to Holly Holm.

'Tarzan' recently appeared on a podcast and offered his thoughts on a potential matchup between a massively undersized UFC champion and a hulking NFL linebacker. The podcast featured Chris Curtis, another mixed martial artist who also competes in the UFC middleweight division.

During his appearance on the podcast, Sean Strickland expressed his belief that a small UFC champion would defeat an NFL linebacker. He made specific mention of Brandon Moreno—the promotion's reigning flyweight kingpin—being capable of beating American Football players several times his size.

"A small champion could go f*** up an NFL player. What's that little Mexican guy, what's that guy's name, the champion?"

After being told Moreno's name, Strickland spoke of his belief that Moreno would emerge victorious against an NFL player.

"It's highly likely that guy goes and f***s up an NFL linebacker. Highly likely, highly likely."

This discussion comes off the heels of retired NFL player Clay Harbor tweeting about his belief in being able to beat Henry Cejudo, who stands 5'3 tall. The claim ignited significant debate across Twitter, with many believing that Harbor was massively discounting the skill disadvantage he would be at.

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Has Sean Strickland ever fought for a UFC title?

Back in early 2022, Sean Strickland was at the helm of a lengthy win streak. The middleweight top contender was the winner of six consecutive fights, which earned him a title eliminator against former two-division Glory Kickboxing champion Alex Pereira for the right to face Israel Adesanya.

Unfortunately, 'Tarzan' suffered a first-round KO that launched 'Poatan' into title contention. It was the closest he'd ever gotten to a title fight in the UFC. With his winning streak snapped, Strickland went back to the drawing board but was unable to rebound against a tough Jared Cannonier.

The split decision loss to Cannonier marked the first time in his career that Strickland had suffered consecutive losses. Nevertheless, the 185-pounder rebounded quickly by returning a month later against Nassourdine Imavov at light heavyweight. Strickland is yet to compete for a UFC title.