Chimaev has shared a glimpse of his sparring with Sean
Strickland.
Chimaev will put his middleweight title on the line against
Strickland in the main event at
UFC 328 on May 9 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
There is some serious beef between Chimaev and Strickland from
their time training together.
Chimaev (15-0) briefly trained with Strickland (30-7) at the
Xtreme Couture MMA in Las Vegas. Things allegedly went sour
between the two after Strickland made insensitive comments about
Chimaev’s homeland of Chechnya. Strickland claims Chimaev didn’t
show up when invited to settle things like men. Meanwhile, Chimaev
says those who saw them train together know what went down.
Chimaev also made Strickland tap out in sparring, which the
American admitted in a previous interview with “The Schmo.”
However, Strickland has since dismissed it as a situational
grappling session.
Strickland has recently accused Chimaev of bullying lesser fighters
in the gym. “Borz” finally posted a short clip of a sparring
session with Strickland. Watch it below:
I am bullying weak people 😂 pic.twitter.com/dVVM3wTxpg
— Khamzat
Chimaev (@KChimaev)
May 5, 2026