Sean Strickland vs. Khamzat Chimaev had certain parallels to Chris Weidman vs. Anderson Silva which was addressed in a certain regard by ‘The All-American’ himself. Sean Strickland reclaimed the middleweight crown against Khamzat Chimaev in what many saw as an upset at UFC 328.
Someone tied to upset UFC middleweight title wins is Chris Weidman who famously ended the lengthy championship winning streak of Anderson Silva to usurp his 185 pound throne. When asked for his thoughts on Strickland again capturing gold and in another context where a lot of people saw it as a massive upset victory, Weidman said [via Bowks Talking Bouts],
“It was very impressive, just like dealing with the aura of somebody like a [Khamzat] Chimaev or like an Anderson. They bring this aura where they can beat you before you even walk in the octagon. You hear all the stories of the training and different things. That could really manipulate your brain. Put a lot of doubt there and the confidence runs away. [Sean] Strickland had a very strong mind.”
“Everything that Chimaev wanted to do happened in that first round and he stayed cool, calm, and collected. Eventually hit him with a good shot on the feet. Actually, before Chimaev took a bad shot and fell to his own back, kind of pulled guard, he got hit with a good shot. So, I think he was kind of hurt. That was a big moment for him.”
Sean Strickland got the nod from Chris Weidman, former champ outlines biggest variables in the title bout
Further delving into the machinations of the Strickland versus Chimaev matchup at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on May 9th, Chis Weidman continued [via Bowks Talking Bouts],
“Then I think Strickland’s confidence started growing like ‘wow okay, me defending well on the ground making him work on things, not let him really have his way completely with me in that first round,’ I think opened up a lot for him moving forward in that fight and it was a very close fight. Everyone’s arguing on who really won. I thought Strickland.”
“I have no problem with Strickland winning in that fight. I thought it came down to that fifth round and based on some of the shots he was landing on the feet, I gave it to Strickland. But I also could have seen it go to Chimaev. It just depends on how much you’re weighing the takedowns in.”