New drama! Chimaev explains why he released a training video with the 'liar' Strickland; bad boy explodes and blasts champion: 'F***ing rat'

Image montage used to promote the Chimaev vs. Strickland fight at UFC. Photo: Reproduction/YouTube/UFC

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The long-awaited fight between Khamzat Shimaev e Sean Strickland It's getting closer, but anyone who thinks the pair have toned down the taunts, insults and threats is mistaken. This Saturday (9), in New Jersey (USA), the athletes will finally measure their strength in the most important fight of UFC 328 to determine who is the best middleweight (up to 83,9 kg). And if the atmosphere was already tense, the Chechen champion intensified the animosity with an attitude that left the American bad boy extremely irritated.

It's no secret that the fighters, now sworn enemies, were once partners at the 'Xtreme Couture' gym, and that activity sparked their feud. Team captain Strickland constantly reiterates that 'Borz's' behavior in training is unacceptable, as he sees him as a bully who punishes athletes of far inferior skill and physique.

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Where's Strickland? Chimaev is puzzled by his enemy's disappearance after the threat and downplays the increased security at UFC 328: 'It's for his protection'.

Therefore, the UFC champion released a video of the training session with the American with the caption, 'I'm intimidating weak people 😂'. The footage is 26 seconds long and shows Chimaev and Strickland engaging in friendly sparring, with the former appearing more at ease. The Chechen explained that he made the material public to counter his rival's narrative, who accuses him of being a terrible training partner. Furthermore, 'Borz' emphasized that the bad boy is the one with an unpleasant attitude on the team.

“I simply found the old video and posted it because he's saying I only train with weak people. And in the video, we did some light sparring, just touching. It wasn't 100% like I normally do. He said he didn't want to do heavy sparring, and when I started hitting harder, he started telling the coach, 'This guy started punching hard,'” said the champion at the 'media day' of [event name]. UFC 328.

“He also had problems with the coach, because I hit him hard and he kept asking him, like, 'Can you stop this guy?'. This guy lies too much. It's crazy. Ask anyone who was at the gym, his friends. They'll tell you,” he concluded.

Strickland freaks out

Sean Strickland Promotes UFC event. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook/UFC

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Upon learning of the video posted by the wrestler, Strickland disapproved of his attitude and did what he does best: he attacked without thinking twice or mincing words. In martial arts, many professionals believe that what happens in training stays in the gym. The former UFC middleweight champion is one of the fighters who follows this concept, but stressed that he wasn't surprised that 'Borz' broke that code, as he always expects the worst from him. In fact, in his trash talk, the bad boy repeatedly stated that his opponent has no dignity whatsoever.

“Oh my God. You know what’s funny? That’s what led me to challenge him. How long is the video? About 23 seconds? What a dirty bastard. You post a light sparring session. That’s what I’m talking about. The guy is a fucking rat. First of all, I didn’t even know we were being filmed. Those were warm-up rounds. You’re just a weak man. What’s the point of this?”, said the former champion, also on 'media day'.

“We were training lightly and you showed up. But I like women and he likes his goats, so I won here. We only trained once, I think it was three rounds of sparring. So, we trained once and I always say that when I go to the gym, I want to train with the best. I wanted to train with him, but he always went and beat the weaker guys. I don't know, man,” he concluded.

I am bullying weak people 😂 pic.twitter.com/dVVM3wTxpg

Khamzat Shimaev (@KChimaev) May 5, 2026