Sean Strickland Calls Ariel Helwani a 'Pathetic Leech' After Criticism of His Trash Talk
A new MMA beef has been brewing, and this time it is between the newly-crowned two-time UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland and esteemed MMA journalist Ariel Helwani.
Their feud stems from Strickland's fight with former UFC middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev, who shared the cage for five grueling rounds of a championship fight this past Saturday at UFC 328.
The buildup to the fight, however, was filled with all types of antics and trash talk, from Strickland and Chimaev trading personal insults to Chimaev kicking Strickland during their faceoff.
Helwani, however, had a lot to say about Strickland's behavior in particular. He was especially perplexed by Strickland's apology during his post-fight speech (via UFC on YouTube):
In his speech, Strickland issues an apology, saying, "I just want to apologise to my American fans, to my Muslim fans, and my Christian fans. I went too f-ing hard, I'll admit it. I respect all of you guys."
Speaking on the pre-fight buildup, Helwani said that Strickland's words crossed a line that could not be undone with an apology (via The Ariel Helwani Show on YouTube):
"He is standing up there saying insane, vile sh- about muslim people, about Khamzat, about his family, about people he's associated with... he's saying it with his f- chest," he stated.
"You win that fight and tell the world that was all for show, that was all for promotion? That is the biggest bunch of bullsh- I've ever heard. That is fraud. That is cowardly sh-," he said while speaking to his crew.
"You cannot walk that back. You called Khamzat's mother a wh-! That tells me you're not who you say you are. You're a walking contradiction," Helwani said.
He even shared his opinions during his interview with Jake Paul, saying that the apology in the post-fight interview was hypocritical (via Home of Fight on X):
Jake Paul says Sean Strickland crossed the lines in his trash talk against Khamzat Chimaev and he can't go back:
— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) May 11, 2026
"When you're on stage and there is all this energy and build up tension, nerves, and excitement, you might go a little bit too far.
At the end of the day, when… pic.twitter.com/LPuDyiXRzn
"There are certain things that you can't walk back," Helwani told Paul. "To me, I found that to be pretty wild even to my standards."
Strickland Fires Back
Upon seeing the clip of Helwani's criticism on the Happy Punch X account, Strickland responded with brutal honesty via his own post (via Sean Strickland on X):
This is why I dont do media with him. You are a leech who I've never respected. The moment I met this man I knew his quality. End of the day the hatred between was real, what he said about me was wrong, what I said about himwas wrong. This what hate and anger does to people and…
— Sean Strickland (@SStricklandMMA) May 11, 2026
"You are and will always be a pathetic MMA leech who has done nothing besides criticizing men who are better than yourself," Strickland wrote.
The middleweight champion also followed up with a political critique of Ariel, writing in an X post, "He personally thanked me once for standing up for Israel during the 7th attacks. I stand by that.... over the course of it, my views dramatically changed. It went from hostage rescue to collective punishment aimed at women and children."
"I would say without a doubt that the AIPAC joke may have rubbed him the wrong way from how much he said ‘Israel support mattered to him'... so again you are a weak man who I will continue to avoid," he concluded.
Strickland referenced his joke about the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) during his post-fight interview on the UFC desk (via HappyPunch on X):
Sean Strickland was disgusted after seeing his face on the broadcast
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) May 10, 2026
"Oh f*ck. Jesus Christ, dude. I'm an ugly motherf*cker. Oh my God. Looks like a horror movie. I look like I'm part of AIPAC." pic.twitter.com/v5Go8I2A3O
Ariel Defends Himself
Never one to back down from trash talk coming from trained fighters, Helwani followed up with a post on X responding to Sean Strickland's insults.
"Call me a lot of sh-, if you wish, but a leech is laughable. There was nothing to leech off," Helwani wrote, directly addressing Strickland's name-calling.
"Sounds like my honest criticism of inauthentic banter - not the fight, which I was glowingly positive about - struck a nerve. Ah well. That's the job," he continued.
"Judge me by my enemies. If they think I'm a bad guy, I'm very happy. I was here before y'all got here and will be here long after, too," he said, referencing his long career in MMA coverage.
While the disdain between these two may never fully diminish, it is unlikely that either of these men will escalate it past internet trash talk.
Strickland even jokingly responded to the entire situation on social media:
Life is good! Have a great day everyone. Get off the internet and go enjoy some sunshine :)
— Sean Strickland (@SStricklandMMA) May 11, 2026
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This story was originally published May 11, 2026 at 7:14 PM.