UFC 328 press conference draws 210K live viewers, fifth-highest in history

The UFC 328 press conference drew 210,000 live viewers on YouTube, making it the fifth most-watched press conference in UFC promotion history and the highest-viewed edition never to feature Conor McGregor. The event, set for May 9, 2026, is headlined by middleweight champion Sean Strickland defending his title against top-ranked contender Khamzat Chimaev.

Strickland, 35, carries a 31-7-0 record into the bout and has held the middleweight title with the kind of relentless output that defines his style. Fighting out of Xtreme Couture, the six-foot-one American lands 6.04 significant strikes per minute at 42 percent accuracy, with a 76-inch reach he puts to constant use from an orthodox stance.

His challenger, Chimaev, is ranked number one in the middleweight division and sits tenth in the pound-for-pound standings. The 30-year-old — now 32 — fights out of Allstars Training Center under the UAE flag and owns a 15-1-0 record. At six-foot-two with a 75-inch reach, "Borz" is a suffocating wrestler who averages 5.29 takedowns per 15 minutes and 1.8 submission attempts in the same span, while converting strikes at 60 percent accuracy.

Why it matters

• The 210,000 viewer figure places this press conference ahead of every non-McGregor UFC event in history, signaling mainstream interest in the Strickland-Chimaev matchup.
• Only the Khabib Nurmagomedov versus McGregor UFC 229 presser (505,000 viewers), the McGregor-Poirier trilogy, and both McGregor-Diaz events rank above it.
• The matchup pits the middleweight division's most active striker against its most prolific takedown artist, creating a stark style contrast that has clearly captured public attention ahead of fight night.