Khamzat Chimaev might not be done with Sean Strickland.
“See you again soon.”
Strickland won a narrow split decision over Chimaev to become a two-time UFC champion at 185 pounds, a feat only matched by Israel Adesanya (who Strickland defeated to win his first title at UFC 293). The scorecards were close, with Strickland earning the nod via 48-47 scores on two judges’ cards. Post-fight, the two were cordial—stark contrast to weeks of heated pre-fight trash talk—with Chimaev even putting the belt around Strickland’s waist.
It’s unclear exactly what Chimaev’s tweet meant as UFC CEO Dana White later told reporters that Chimaev plans to move up to light heavyweight after what looked to be a difficult middleweight cut this time around. Even before suffering his first loss, Chimaev had mentioned on multiple occasions that he would like to become a champion at 205 pounds.
While an immediate rematch is a possibility if Chimaev sticks around at middleweight, Strickland also has a healthy line of potential challengers for his second reign including a rematches with top contenders Nassourdine Imavov and Brendan Allen (who first has to get past Edmen Shahbazyan in June), or fresh fights against Caio Borralho and Joe Pyfer.
Given Chimaev typically has long stretches of inactivity between bouts (he has fought just once a year since 2023), it could be a while before fans get a definitive answer on his next move.
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