Why Sean Strickland Can Break Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 328 – Former UFC Champ Breaks It Down
A former UFC champion believes the key to Sean Strickland shocking the world again at UFC 328 is not a takedown or a jab, but a psychological crack in Khamzat Chimaev on fight night. He thinks Strickland can drag the undefeated middleweight king into an emotional brawl, force early mistakes, and turn a daunting stylistic task into a winnable title fight.
Khamzat Chimaev vs. Sean Strickland
Khamzat Chimaev will defend his undisputed UFC middleweight title against former champion Sean Strickland in the main event of UFC 328 on May 9 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. It is Chimaev’s first defense since taking the belt from Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 319, where he dominated with pressure wrestling and top control over five rounds. Strickland enters as the challenger after stopping Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez on February 21, a performance that vaulted him past other contenders into the title shot.
Chimaev is 15-0 as a professional and stormed into title contention with a run where he absorbed just one significant strike in his first four UFC bouts. He has since beaten three former UFC champions in Kamaru Usman, Robert Whittaker and Du Plessis, including a brutal face crank against Whittaker and a dominant decision over Du Plessis to claim middleweight gold.
Strickland, 30-7, is a former middleweight champion himself after his upset of Israel Adesanya in 2023, though he later dropped the belt to Du Plessis at UFC 297 before rebounding and then rebuilding momentum with the Hernandez knockout.
UFC 328: Ex-Champion Breaks Down How Sean Strickland Can Push Khamzat Chimaev Over the Edge
Speaking on social media, the former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling laid out a simple read: if Strickland wins the mental battle early, he opens the door to win the fight. Speaking to Steve Lee, the Longo’s MMA gym manager, Sterling explained.
“I think Strickland is going to get in his head and force Khamzat to go crazy early on,” he said. “I think Strickland has a really good chance, especially if he can get Khamzat frustrated and make him fight outside of himself.” In his view, the emotional edge is where Strickland’s best chance lies against a younger, explosive champion with elite grappling credentials.
There is evidence that this dynamic is already in play. After Strickland’s recent callout, Chimaev responded on social media with a pointed “Habibi calm down, I destroyed the guy who beat you twice. American b____,” a reference to his win over Du Plessis, who twice defeated Strickland.
The exchange fed into a simmering grudge that has been building since they previously trained together and publicly traded barbs about those sessions and each other’s character. That history gives Strickland material to needle Chimaev in fight week media and faceoffs, exactly the kind of environment the former bantamweight champion believes could push the titleholder into uncharacteristic risks.
If Chimaev starts fast and emotional, the former bantamweight champion expects Strickland to have opportunities to punish rushed entries and over-committed shots. Strickland’s style is built on small defensive reads rather than big counters, but extended exchanges favor the fighter who keeps his structure and feet under him. If he can survive Chimaev’s first wave and keep the champion swinging at air or colliding with the high guard, he can bank rounds on volume and pressure while chipping away at cardio.
The danger for Chimaev in this matchup is less technical and more psychological. If he bites on Strickland’s trash talk, swings too big in early exchanges or shoots from too far out, he risks burning energy against a durable, cardio-heavy former champion. Longer fights extend the sample size where Strickland’s jab, pressure and experience across five rounds can start to matter.
Strickland has leaned into a persona as the last “old school” contender, calling Chimaev a bully and questioning the champion’s character while promising to “f*** [Khamzat] up” as the “last American in the sport.” Chimaev has fired back with his own insults and reminders of his wins over the men who beat Strickland, adding fuel to the build-up. The tension is likely to escalate through press conferences, embedded features and the final faceoff in Newark.
From the former bantamweight champion’s perspective, those moments matter almost as much as the opening bell. If Strickland can keep poking at Chimaev until emotion overrides tactics, the challenger gains his best window to reclaim UFC gold on May 9.
