Strickland defeats Chimaev by split decision to win middleweight title

Sean Strickland defeated Khamzat Chimaev by split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47) to become the new UFC middleweight champion at UFC 328. The analyst noted confusion about what happened to Chimaev in the middle of the second round when he suddenly fell to his back, though Chimaev continued fighting afterward without apparent injury. Chimaev appeared to conserve energy in the third round and did not pursue wrestling. The post suggested Chimaev was not as well-prepared functionally as he was for his bout with Dricus Du Plessis, possibly due to weight cutting difficulties. Chimaev had controlled 4:44 of the first round before the puzzling second round incident.