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Mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Sean Strickland has spoken out in support of Bud Light after its brand partnership with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was announced.
Strickland, 32, has been a professional competitor since 2008 and is the UFC middleweight champion. He often speaks out about topics he is passionate about.
On Tuesday, it was revealed that the beer brand was returning as the official beer of the championship. As part of the partnership, Bud Light will become the official UFC beer in the United States, and Anheuser-Busch will become the sole "Official Beer Partner of UFC," starting on January 1.
This decision means Bud Light will replace Modelo as the official beer—and while livid fans online have said they will be canceling their UFC subscriptions, Strickland approves of the partnership.
Newsweek reached out to Anheuser-Busch and Strickland's representatives for comment via email on Friday.
Posting a video to Instagram, he said he found out that Bud Light was the new sponsor while he was on his way to training. Strickland added that he is proud of the beer brand for "doing the right thing."
He added: "I, Sean Strickland, a representation of the American people, [am] going to fix you Bud Light. Thank you for giving me money, thank you for supporting my platform, I'm going to help you guys."
Strickland doesn't approve of the fact that the brand partnered alongside transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in April this year. In the clip, he said he is "the biggest advocate of biological females." He added that if he were to share his views on transgender people on Instagram, he would be kicked off the platform.
Despite all of this, Strickland told his followers that he is looking forward to picking up a can of Bud Light now that the brand has a deal with UFC. "Don't worry I got this!!! I'm here to save the day," he captioned the video.
Some of the fans in the comment section approved of him supporting the beer company, while others said they didn't care if Strickland would be drinking the beverage again, as they were still boycotting it.
"He's getting that bag," one person wrote.
"This man's the hero America deserves," posted another.
"I love how Sean literally speaks his mind and doesn't hold back," someone else commented.
Another fan added: "Bud Light is unsavable. You can't pull that on people and expect to throw money at it and hope to re-masculine your brand."
While some UFC fans may be unhappy with the partnership deal, this can't be said for everyone.
"Are there seriously people who don't drink this beverage because it was promoted by a trans [person]? Who cares, brother," one person wrote on X.
Another took the position of indifference, posting: "Does anyone actually care that UFC is sponsored by Bud Light now? I wasn't really ever drinking Bud Light before the controversy I'm still not gonna drink Bud Light even though I'm still gonna watch UFC fights. I like my own beer and if we're being honest I prefer vodka."
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Billie is a Newsweek Pop Culture and Entertainment Reporter based in London who has appeared online, in print and on ... Read more