UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman says that he supports UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland in his pay dispute with the promotion.
Strickland is currently involved in a back-and-forth pay dispute with the world’s leading MMA promotion, as the UFC middleweight champ wants to make more money for his next title defense against Nassourdine Imavov, which is holding up the rematch between the two rivals.
For Usman, he supports Strickland’s desire to hold out and get more money from the UFC.
Kamaru Usman Supports Sean Strickland
Speaking on the “Pound 4 Pound” podcast, Usman revealed that he supports Strickland’s quest to get a pay raise.
“It’s a very difficult position and if you feel that you’re not getting your just due, it doesn’t matter. You’re always going to want that. That’s always going to supersede everything. So it doesn’t matter if the noble thing to do here is to shut up and fight these fights out. No,” Usman said (via MMAjunkie.com).
“If you feel like you’re not getting your just due, you’re always going to say something. You’re always going to feel some type of way. So yes, there’s points on both sides, but it is what it is. It’s a sucky situation, and this has been happening for a long, long time, and here we are – still happening. So Sean’s not wrong for feeling the way that he feels.”
Kamaru Usman Understands UFC Viewpoint
While Usman supports Strickland’s pay bump quest, he also sees things from the UFC’s perspective and understands that since Strickland just signed a new deal in May, the promotion doesn’t have to pay him more money.
“We all know exactly how he’s feeling because we’ve been through it. The world is just unfair. There’s points on both ends, so this guy has a point in saying, ‘You signed this deal. You should honor it or be a part of it,’ but this other guy is not wrong for trying to get as much as he can from an unfair world that we are in. All in all, it’s just a tough situation to be in,” Usman said.
Kamaru Usman Supports Sean Strickland in UFC Pay Dispute