Belal Muhammad shared his reaction to the fight between Khamzat Chimaev and Sean Strickland at UFC 328. The post suggests Muhammad had made a prediction about the bout that turned out to be incorrect. Muhammad is referred to as an "analyst" in the post, indicating he had publicly shared his expectations for the fight. His reaction came after Strickland defeated Chimaev by split decision. The welterweight contender's analysis appears to have been proven wrong by the actual result.
Welterweight contender Belal Muhammad publicly admitted his pre-fight prediction was off after Sean Strickland defeated Khamzat Chimaev by split decision at UFC 328, with the 37-year-old taking to social media to react to a result he had not seen coming.
Muhammad, ranked sixth in the welterweight division and eighth on the pound-for-pound list, had shared his expectations for the middleweight clash ahead of the event. His analysis proved incorrect when the scorecards were read. The American, who fights out of Roufusport and carries a 24-5 record, is no stranger to offering insight on the sport despite competing a division below the two men he was watching.
Strickland, the reigning middleweight champion, improved his record to 31-7 with the split-decision victory. The 35-year-old from the United States trains out of Xtreme Couture and fights out of an orthodox stance, standing six-foot-one with a 76-inch reach. He lands 6.04 significant strikes per minute, a volume that has long defined his aggressive, output-heavy style.
Chimaev, 32 and representing the United Arab Emirates out of Allstars Training Center, drops to 15-1 with the loss. The number-one middleweight contender and number-ten pound-for-pound fighter entered the contest with a striking accuracy of 60 percent and an extraordinary 5.29 takedowns per 15 minutes, making him one of the most complete grapplers in the division.
Why it matters
- Strickland's split-decision win over the top-ranked Chimaev strengthens his position as middleweight champion
- Chimaev suffers just his second career defeat, complicating his path back to a title shot
- Muhammad's public reaction highlights the cross-divisional attention this fight attracted among fighters and analysts alike
