UFC 328: Chimaev vs Strickland
📺 Watch on: Paramount+
Middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev lost a razor-close decision to Sean Strickland, suffering his first pro loss and the title; in the co-main, Joshua Van made his first flyweight title defense.
Key points
- Sean Strickland upset middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev by split decision over five rounds
- It was the first professional loss of Chimaev's career, dropping him to 15-1
- Strickland became a two-time middleweight champion, only the second after Israel Adesanya
- In the co-main, flyweight champion Joshua Van stopped Tatsuro Taira in round five for his first defense
Fight card
- MAIN🏆 UFC MiddleweightMiddleweight
Strickland def. Chimaev — SD 5
- 🏆 UFC FlyweightFlyweight
Van def. Taira — TKO R5
Report
UFC 328 in Newark delivered a major upset. Middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev, unbeaten and coming off a record-setting title win over Dricus du Plessis, met the relentless Sean Strickland — and could not put his stamp on the fight.
Strickland's volume boxing, durability and refusal to be controlled turned the bout into a grind. Over five rounds the challenger's output and pressure swayed enough of the cards, and he took a split decision to hand Chimaev the first loss of his professional career (now 15-1) and reclaim the belt. Strickland became only the second two-time UFC middleweight champion, after Israel Adesanya.
The co-main event reinforced a changing of the guard: flyweight champion Joshua Van, who had won the title via a freak Pantoja injury, answered his doubters by stopping the dangerous Tatsuro Taira in the fifth round to make a convincing first defense and move to 17-2.