The promotion unveiled massive developments for UFC 335 with some big names featuring on the card. However, many fans noticed Sean Strickland’s name missing from the UFC 335 lineup. Most fingers pointed toward his ATV rollover accident in late September that left him severely bruised. But it turns out the middleweight champion’s absence from the year-ending card was down to an entirely different reason—money.   

Social media content creator Ruben Carter posted a photo of Strickland on his Instagram and wrote that his accident forced him out of the December 12 card in Las Vegas due to “injuries.”

“Sean Strickland has pulled out of his fight against Nassourdine Imavov at #UFC335 T-Mobile Arena due to injuries he sustained during a car crash last month,” Carter’s post read. “Charles Oliveira vs Diego Lopes for the BMF title will now be promoted to main event.”

A fan, however, commented on the post that ‘Tarzan’ is actually asking for more money from the UFC, suggesting that the promotion snubbed him from the main event spot because of pay-related dispute and not the injury. Interestingly, the fan’s comment drew an instant nod from Strickland himself.

“Bingo lol,” the middleweight champion wrote while replying to the fan’s comment on Carter’s post.  

Though Strickland didn’t elaborate on the issue in the comment section, he previously claimed that he is, in fact, in negotiations with the UFC. 

While answering a different fan’s question on X, Strickland revealed that his fight with Nassourdine Imavov is nearly finalized and will become official once they agree on pay. However, he didn’t disclose any details about the fight being slotted for UFC 335.

The UFC middleweight champion’s latest revelation, albeit through a social media comment section, suggests that he couldn’t reach a monetary agreement with the promotion before they finalized the headliner for UFC 335.

However, when it comes to fighter pay itself, Strickland’s views remain critical of the UFC.

Ahead of his fight with Anthony Hernandez at UFC Houston in February 2026, Strickland called the UFC’s fighter pay structure “predatory” and “unfair” while comparing it to other sporting leagues like the NFL.

Sean Strickland’s comeback at UFC 335 became a logical choice because the UFC is booked with marquee matchups through November. That made the vacant December slot in Las Vegas completely ideal for his return. Now, it’s clear that Strickland will only put his middleweight belt on the line once his pay differences with the UFC are resolved, which will hopefully happen by next year. 

In the meantime, the promotion has announced some blockbuster bouts for UFC 335.

UFC announced Charles Oliveira and Alex Pereira’s return for the UFC 335 card 

After weeks of mystery around the last main event of UFC 2026 and the first year under Paramount+, the broadcasters revealed during UFC 332 that Charles Oliveira will defend his BMF belt against fellow Brazilian Diego Lopes at UFC 335 headliner.

The former lightweight champion defeated Max Holloway in March at UFC 326 to capture the symbolic belt. Though the fight didn’t impress viewers, Oliveira was dominant throughout the 25 minutes. He was about to fight Arman Tsarukyan in September at UFC 331, but his teammate Allan Nascimento’s untimely passing derailed those plans.

Diego Lopes is also coming off a stunning knockout victory over Steve Garcia at UFC White House. Since then, the Brazilian-Mexican has been very vocal about his permanent move to lightweight. Interestingly, Lopes was eager to face Oliveira after Rafael Fiziev pulled out of their bout at UFC Rio last year. But the promotion ultimately settled on Mateusz Gamrot.

Further down the card, Dana White announced on Ninda Drama’s stream that the former two-division champion, Alex Pereira, will face Russian knockout machine Sergei Pavlovich in a five-round co-main event at UFC 335.

For ‘Poatan,’ the fight is important to prove that he belongs in the heavyweight division after Ciryl Gane brutalized him at UFC White House. Plus, Pavlovich will also make his case to fight for the 265-pound belt if he gets the nod over Pereira.

Outside the main and co-main events, another banger, Brandon Moreno vs. Charles Johnson, has also been made official for the event.

That said, even without Strickland’s name, the card is definitely looking solid. But it’s not hard to accept that a middleweight title on the line would indeed have elevated it to the card of the year.