Khamzat Chimaev has expressed his belief that his nationality may have played a role in the outcome of his recent middleweight title defense against Sean Strickland at UFC 328. Chimaev, who lost via a narrow split decision, has voiced his dissatisfaction with the judges’ scoring.
The fight, which took place earlier this month, saw Chimaev start with dominant grappling exchanges. However, as the bout progressed, Strickland managed to disrupt Chimaev’s rhythm with his effective jab and pressure, limiting Chimaev’s takedown opportunities. Despite this, Chimaev had significant moments that kept the contest competitive.
Upon the announcement of the split-decision loss, Chimaev initially appeared to accept the result, even going so far as to place the championship belt around Strickland’s waist. However, more than two weeks later, the Chechen fighter has publicly questioned the fairness of the decision, suggesting a potential bias from the American judges.
Chimaev took to X (formerly Twitter) to share his frustrations, although a post expressing these concerns was later deleted. In the deleted message, Chimaev wrote, “All judges are American, the organization is American, and no one is Chechen. It’s a close fight. Who do you think will win?”
Following this initial statement, Chimaev posted again, clarifying that he wasn’t making excuses but was determined to secure a rematch with Sean Strickland. He stated, “No excuses, I just wanna f*ck him up this sh*t trying to run away.” He further added, “I’m waiting. Tell me when you’re ready, Sean Strickland. Next time, somebody has to be dead.”
The loss at UFC 328 marked the first professional defeat for Khamzat Chimaev, bringing his record to 15-1. Prior to this setback, “Borz” had maintained an undefeated streak of 9-0 in the UFC, with notable victories over top contenders like Robert Whittaker, Gilbert Burns, and Kamaru Usman. He had claimed the middleweight championship at UFC 319 in August 2025, defeating former champion Dricus Du Plessis by unanimous decision.