Sean Strickland is UFC middleweight champion again after handing Khamzat Chimaev the first loss of his professional MMA career at UFC 328.
Strickland defeated Chimaev by split decision in the main event at Prudential Center in Newark on May 10, 2026, with the judges scoring it 48-47, 47-48, and 48-47. Chimaev started fast with a dominant grappling round, but Strickland survived, defended better late, and built his case behind steady jabs.
UFC posted the final pre-fight moment below:
LET'S DO THIS THING 😤@KChimaev vs @SStricklandMMA
[ #UFC328 | LIVE NOW on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/Yhs5etowua
— UFC (@ufc) May 10, 2026
Strickland Survives Chimaev’s Best Grappling Round Before Taking Over With Jabs
Round 1: Chimaev shot immediately and took Strickland down within seconds. He worked toward the back while Strickland landed short punches and tried to defend without giving up his neck. Chimaev stayed attached, dragged Strickland across the mat, threatened the choke, moved to mount, and later slammed him back down when Strickland got to his feet. Strickland defended the submission threats, but Chimaev’s takedowns, back control, mount work, and pressure clearly gave him the round.
https://x.com/ufc/status/2053328579795288468
Round 2: Strickland did not sit between rounds, but he came out sharper. He landed a one-two early, while Chimaev answered with a right hand and a jab to the body. The round changed when Chimaev shot and Strickland defended, ending up on top. Chimaev got back up, but his second takedown attempt failed too, putting him underneath Strickland again. Strickland did not pour on damage, but he made Chimaev work and took away the easy grappling that had defined Round 1.
Round 3: Strickland kept the fight in his lane. He jabbed Chimaev repeatedly, and both men spent most of the round trading single shots at range. Chimaev landed enough with his jab to bloody Strickland’s nose, but he did not attempt a takedown in the round. That mattered. Strickland kept touching him, kept the pace familiar, and made Chimaev fight a five-minute striking round.
Round 4: Chimaev smiled before the round and told Strickland, “I love you,” then started working jabs to the body. He landed an overhand right and a body kick, while Strickland answered with right hands and kept jabbing. Chimaev backed Strickland to the fence, landed two left hands, and finally returned to wrestling with about a minute left. He secured the takedown and kept Strickland trapped against the fence until the horn. It was not the Round 1 avalanche, but the late control gave Chimaev a strong claim to the round.
Round 5: Chimaev’s corner, including Arman Tsarukyan, told him to attack the body and finish with wrestling. Strickland’s corner pointed out that Chimaev looked exhausted. Chimaev got a takedown seconds into the round, but Strickland got back up almost immediately and nearly turned the exchange into his own takedown. Back in open space, Strickland kept landing jabs and right hands while Chimaev missed with big overhands. Chimaev shot again with about 80 seconds left, briefly got Strickland down near the fence, but Strickland worked back up and both men threw until the horn.
UFC posted the fight going to the cards below:
To the scorecards…
Who will be crowned the middleweight champ?
[ #UFC328 | LIVE NOW on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/eNCeRXr8fZ
— UFC (@ufc) May 10, 2026
Chimaev entered unbeaten and making his first middleweight title defense after beating Dricus du Plessis at UFC 319. Strickland came in trying to win the belt back after two failed championship fights with du Plessis.
UFC shared the post-fight respect between them here:
Respect.
[ @KChimaev | @SStricklandMMA | #UFC328 ] pic.twitter.com/84XO5NNNXv
— UFC (@ufc) May 10, 2026
Against the odds 😤@SStricklandMMA gets the split-decision victory to earn middleweight gold at #UFC328! pic.twitter.com/hBKe15bSh9
— UFC (@ufc) May 10, 2026
The result closed a UFC 328 card that also featured Joshua Van’s fifth-round title defense over Tatsuro Taira, Sean Brady’s lopsided decision over Joaquin Buckley, and King Green’s first-round submission of Jeremy Stephens. The main event had been nasty all week too, with Chimaev previously kicking Strickland during their UFC 328 faceoff and Strickland accusing him of a questionable weigh-in moment.
Strickland survived the early grappling storm, forced longer striking stretches, and did enough late to take the belt back.
