Strickland travels near Chimaev's gym, Chimaev responds to wrestling challenges

Sean Strickland posted his location approximately 10 minutes from Khamzat Chimaev's training facility on social media, apparently trying to provoke an in-person confrontation. When nothing happened, Strickland began mocking Chimaev's previous statements about what would happen if they met on the street. In response to multiple challenge callouts from wrestlers including Bo Nickal, Chimaev stated he has trouble finding sparring partners and invited any Olympic champion to spar with him, offering $200,000 if they survive the session. The post suggests this is just the beginning of promotional buildup between the fighters. Dana White also commented that he does not want to strip Carlos Ulberg of a title shot or create an interim belt, saying everything will be decided after their personal meeting.