Sean Strickland defeats Khamzat Chimaev by split decision to win UFC middleweight title

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 fight took an unexpected turn in the second round when Chimaev suddenly fell to his back mid-round for unclear reasons, despite having controlled 4 minutes and 44 seconds in the first round. Chimaev did not appear injured afterward but seemed to conserve energy in the third round by avoiding wrestling exchanges entirely. His conditioning appeared worse than in his previous fight against Dricus Du Plessis, possibly due to weight cut issues. The second-round incident remains unexplained and was a pivotal moment in the championship bout.