Sean Strickland defeated Khamzat Chimaev via split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47) to become the new UFC middleweight champion at UFC 328. The post author notes the biggest mystery of the fight was what happened to Chimaev in the middle of the second round when he suddenly fell to his back, though he didn't appear injured afterward. Chimaev appeared to conserve energy in the third round and avoided grappling exchanges entirely. The analysis suggests Chimaev wasn't as well-prepared functionally as he was for his bout with Du Plessis, possibly due to weight cut issues. Everything was going well for Chimaev with 4 minutes and 44 seconds of control time in the first round before something went wrong in round two.
Sean Strickland captured the UFC middleweight championship at UFC 328 on May 9, defeating Khamzat Chimaev by split decision with scores of 47-48, 48-47, and 48-47 in what proved to be a dramatic and puzzling contest.
Strickland, now 31-7-0, trains out of Xtreme Couture and fights out of an orthodox stance at six-foot-one with a 76-inch reach. The 35-year-old American is one of the division's most prolific volume strikers, landing 6.04 significant strikes per minute, and he now holds the middleweight title for the second time in his career.
Chimaev, fighting out of Allstars Training Center and representing the United Arab Emirates, entered the bout as the division's number-one contender and ranked tenth pound-for-pound at 15-1-0. The 32-year-old is six-foot-two with a 75-inch reach and carries elite grappling credentials — 5.29 takedowns per 15 minutes and a 60 percent striking accuracy — making him among the most well-rounded fighters in the division.
The bout unfolded in a deeply unexpected fashion. Chimaev looked dominant early, racking up four minutes and 44 seconds of control time in the first round. Then, midway through the second, he suddenly dropped to his back under circumstances that remained unexplained, though he showed no apparent signs of injury afterward. He appeared to conserve energy through the championship rounds and abandoned grappling exchanges in the third entirely, raising questions about whether a difficult weight cut had sapped his functional capacity relative to his previous outing against Dricus Du Plessis.
Why it matters
- Strickland reclaims the middleweight title, upending the division's expected hierarchy
- Chimaev suffers just the second loss of his professional career and falls from the top contender position
- Chimaev's mysterious second-round collapse invites scrutiny over weight-cutting protocols at 185 pounds
- Du Plessis, ranked second in the division at 23-3-0, now figures prominently in the title picture
Saturday, May 9, 2026
