Sean Strickland defeats Khamzat Chimaev to win UFC 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 analysis questions what happened to Chimaev in the middle of the second round when he suddenly fell to his back, noting he didn't appear injured afterward. Chimaev controlled 4 minutes and 44 seconds of the first round, but something changed dramatically in round two. In the third round, Chimaev appeared to conserve energy and avoided grappling entirely. The post suggests Chimaev was not as well-prepared functionally as he was for his fight against Dricus Du Plessis, potentially due to weight cut issues.