According to media scorecards, 13 out of 24 journalists gave the fight victory to Khamzat Chimaev in his bout against Sean Strickland, despite Strickland winning by split decision. This indicates significant disagreement among media members about the outcome. The post is duplicated across multiple channels for those experiencing loading issues. The split scoring reflects how competitive and close the fight was perceived to be by observers.
Sean Strickland retained his middleweight championship against Khamzat Chimaev by split decision, but media scorecards released after the bout revealed just how razor-thin the margin truly was — 13 of 24 journalists who scored the fight officially gave the nod to Chimaev.
Strickland, 35, enters the result at 31-7-0, holding the UFC middleweight title out of Xtreme Couture. The American stands six-foot-one with a 76-inch reach and fights out of an orthodox stance. He is one of the most active strikers in the division, landing 6.04 significant strikes per minute, and his output has long been the engine of his game plan.
Chimaev, fighting out of Allstars Training Center and representing the United Arab Emirates, came in ranked number one in the middleweight division and tenth on the pound-for-pound list. The 32-year-old carries a 15-1-0 record and stands six-foot-two. His 60 percent striking accuracy is among the best in the sport, and he averages 5.29 takedowns per 15 minutes — a relentless pressure that makes him exceptionally difficult to prepare for.
Why it matters
- With 13 of 24 media members scoring the fight for Chimaev, the split decision points to a genuinely contested bout rather than a clear champion's victory
- Strickland retains the title, but the closeness of the scoring could fuel calls for an immediate rematch
- The stylistic clash — Strickland's high-volume orthodox striking against Chimaev's elite grappling and takedown volume — produced the kind of competitive ambiguity that split decisions are built on
- Chimaev's divisional ranking and pound-for-pound standing mean the result does little to separate the two fighters in the eyes of the division's landscape
