Tim Kennedy considering a move down in weight class, says he’d be ‘faster at 170’

Bloody Elbow 2.0 | Anton Tabuena

Although Tim Kennedy is coming off one of the biggest wins of his MMA career against Michael Bisping, he is not certain whether he will remain in that division to reap the rewards.

The former Strikeforce middleweight champion recently joined The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, where he suggested that he may not be long for the division, and was contemplating a move down to welterweight had Robbie Lawler won the title at UFC 171.

“Definitely possible,” Kennedy told Joe Rogan on Wednesday. “Honestly, had Robbie Lawler beat Johny Hendricks I would cut to fight Robbie. I think I’d have to be faster at 170. Watching these guys whoosh all over the place.”

One of Kennedy’s biggest issues with the current weight divisions in MMA is that the gaps between divisions are simply too large, and should be cut down to resemble the boxing model.

“You have 155, 170, 185 and 205. You have four weight classes from 155 to 205. That’s crazy. ”

Kennedy even suggested a potential 180lb weight class, which he admit would have been perfect for him.

“I think I’m kind of between 185 and 170. My shape, my reach, my height. I would love there to be a 180. That would be awesome for me.”

Assuming he will remain at middleweight for the foreseeable future, Kennedy believes that he is “close” to a title shot, and that he deserves a match-up against either Vitor Belfort, Ronaldo Souza, or even the winner between Mousasi and Munoz.

“I think I’m close, either. The next fight, whoever Joe Silva gives me. If it’s Vitor Belfort, [Ronaldo Souza], that puts me right there. I’m No. 6. [If] I beat a No. 2-3 guy, that’s a title fight. I’ll be 4-0 in the UFC just beating a title eliminator. My last two fights have been five-round main events. I’m potentially one fight away.

“Mark Munoz and Gegard Mousasi are fighting. Could I potentially be fighting the winner of that fight? That’s definitely in the realm, too. If that’s the case maybe I am two fights away. If I cut down to 170 I don’t think they’d let me fight for the title. I’d still be one fight away. Maybe two. So no, I don’t think I’d be any closer.”

Transcription take from MMAFighting.com’s David St. Martinatch

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About the author

Karim Zidan

Karim Zidan is a investigative reporter and feature writer focusing on the intersection of sports and politics. He has written for BloodyElbow since 2014 and has served as an associate editor since 2016. He also writes for The New York Times and The Guardian. Karim has been invited to speak about his work at numerous universities, including Princeton, and was a panelist at the South by Southwest (SXSW) film festival and the Oslo Freedom Forum. He also participated in the United Nations counter-terrorism conference in 2021. His reporting on Ramzan Kadyrov’s involvement in MMA, much of which was done for Bloody Elbow, has led to numerous award nominations, and was the basis of an award-winning HBO Real Sports documentary.