Sean Strickland upsets Khamzat Chimaev for middleweight title at UFC 328

Matt Erickson, MMA JunkieSun, May 10, 2026 at 5:00 AM UTC

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Sean Strickland upsets Khamzat Chimaev for middleweight title at UFC 328

A big talking point ahead of the UFC 328 main event was how no one had attempted to submit Sean Strickland.

The former middleweight champion made a point of latent homophobic and sexist comments, consistent with his persona, to explain why he's never been submitted and doesn't wind up in that position. Saturday, he wound up there a bunch in the first round.

But he survived, then turned the tide in a completely unexpected way and gave middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev the type of close fight few outside Strickland's camp likely were expecting. The champ was more than a 5-1 favorite and was unbeaten.

But Strickland (29-7 MMA, 18-7 UFC) recaptured the middleweight title with a split decision at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. He took the fight with a pair of 48-47 scores; Chimaev (15-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) took a dissenting 48-47 scorecard, but it still resulted in the first loss of his career – and a shocker on the East Coast.

Strickland said he broke his nose in the fight in his post-fight interview. He also said he was sorry for his pre-fight talk and antics on the way to the bout, which included threats of gun violence. But in the end, Chimaev embraced Strickland and put the belt around his waist to make him a two-time middleweight champion.

Chimaev shot for a double-leg takedown quickly into the fight and put Strickland on his butt on the canvas against the fence. Strickland's get-up was decent, but the champ stayed blanketed on him and pulled him back to the canvas and took his back with relative ease. Chimaev adjusted and locked up his left leg, then climbed on his back and got his hooks in. Strickland stayed defensive and fought off the submission attempts until Chimaev picked him up and slammed him hard with about a minute left in the round. Chimaev searched for a rear-naked choke late, but it wasn't there.

Strickland came out swinging at the start of the second, which at least gave himself a chance to get started. Chimaev didn't give him that opportunity in the first. A Chimaev body shot was countered nicely by a big Strickland right, and for the first 90 seconds the fight looked competitive on the feet.

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When Chimaev shot for the takedown that was expected, though, Strickland not only defended, but forced his way on top. Chimaev settled into guard and tried to work toward the fence to wall-walk. After a full minute in that position, Strickland let the champ back to his feet – and landed a right hand. Chimaev looked for a takedown again after that – and couldn't get it.

Suddenly, the tide turned. And it turned in a big way. Strickland had two full minutes in the second round to work – and Chimaev looked exhausted on his back. Chimaev's weight cut reportedly was in the neighborhood of 45 pounds – and Chimaev was the last fighter to come to the scale at Friday's weigh-ins.

Strickland's jab was on point on repeat in the third. Chimaev fired back with consistency, but there was no particular threat of a takedown. And without that, Strickland continued to land. Chimaev landed punches of his own, and late in the round started talking to Strickland. But still, Strickland seemed to be ahead in the striking exchanges – and Chimaev didn't attempt a single takedown in the round.

Chimaev may have skipped a takedown attempt in the third, but in the fourth, he saved it for a strategic moment late in the frame, In the final 45 seconds, he finally went back to the wrestling well for a takedown. After more than four minutes of trading jabs, it likely was what the champ needed to win the round.

Chimaev went straight to his bread-and-butter move early in the final round and tried to put Strickland on the mat. But despite about a minute of control, Chimaev couldn't get much done and they went back to the center of the cage. Strickland's energy appeared to have waned, though, and if Chimaev looked exhausted 15 minutes prior, he may have gotten his second wind at the right time.

But in the second half of the round, Strickland started to get more pep in his step. It forced Chimaev to go a little harder, and with 80 seconds left he dragged Strickland back to the canvas for his eighth takedown of the fight. Strickland separated and landed a right hand late, and Chimaev fired back with one of his biggest punches of the fight. It seemed to come down to the final frame, and the judges concurred it was a close one.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 328 results: -

Sean Strickland def. Khamzat Chimaev via split decision (48-47, 47-48, 48-47) – to win middleweight title

Champ Joshua Van def. Tatsuro Taira via TKO (punches) – Round 5, 1:32 – to retain flyweight title

Alexander Volkov def. Waldo Cortes-Acosta via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Sean Brady def. Joaquin Buckley via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-27)

King Green def. Jeremy Stephens via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 4:20

Ateba Gautier def. Ozzy Diaz via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 1:10

Yaroslav Amosov def. Joel Alvarez via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 2, 1:13

Grant Dawson def. Mateusz Rebecki via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 4:42

Jim Miller def. Jared Gordon via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:29

Roman Kopylov def. Marco Tulio via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Pat Sabatini def. William Gomis via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Baisangur Susurkaev def. Djorden Santos via technical submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 4:12

Jose Ochoa def. Clayton Carpenter via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC 328: Sean Strickland upsets Khamzat Chimaev for middleweight title

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