Paul Craig will be changing weight classes next time out.
Craig recently revealed his next fight will be at middleweight as it is a move he has been contemplating for some time. After he announced it, many were stunned but the fan-favorite decided to elaborate on his decision.
Paul Craig On Sean Strickland
“We had this idea of going to middleweight, not because light heavyweight is done, but just the way light heavyweight is sitting at the moment, there’s not a lot of fights above me who I’m going to get to fight,” Craig said in the most recent episode of his “Leather’d Podcast.” “So I’m like, ‘Right, maybe there’s an opportunity at middleweight.’ So we’re like, ‘Right, we’ve got a bit of time. Just had a nose operation. Let’s see if we can make the weight and then go in on the Saturday and spar hard, and see if we can perform.’”
Not only does Paul Craig plan to fight at 185lbs going forward, he also called out Sean Strickland in the process. He believes that fight makes sense and, he thinks he has a better chance of becoming the UFC champ at middleweight.
“I do believe at middleweight there’s some opportunities for me,” Craig added. “I like the idea of Sean Strickland. I like the idea of that fight. He’s gonna stand in front of you, isn’t he? You don’t look at him and think, ‘Right, he’s a very dangerous striker, and I’m imagining he’s got very good wrestling, very good jiu-jitsu.’”
“I’m just a jiu-jitsu guy fighting MMA. I believe I can capitalize on that. Size is gonna be a huge factor, as well. When you look at the champ, Israel Adesanya, he’s not got a lot of jiu-jitsu. I’m not saying he doesn’t have any, but if you’re a jiu-jitsu guy, that’s how you’re weighing this up. How many guys in that top 15 have elite-level jiu-jitsu?”
Paul Craig is currently ranked ninth at light heavyweight and is 8-6-1 in the UFC with notable wins over Jamahal Hill, Shogun Rua, Nikita Krylov, and Magomed Ankalaev among others.
