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'.

Chimaev promotes UFC event. Photo: Reproduction/X/UFC

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One of the biggest names in MMA today, Khamzat Shimaev only thinks about Sean StricklandAnd, precisely for that reason, the middleweight champion (up to 83,9 kg) is surprised by the American's behavior. This Saturday (9), in New Jersey (USA), the Chechen puts the category belt on the line for the first time against his rival in the main fight of UFC 328But he doesn't want to meet him only in the octagon.

So much so that, on 'media day' of UFC 328Chimaev was puzzled by the former champion's disappearance during the week of the highly anticipated fight. This was because, recently, Strickland, at the height of their rivalry, threatened his enemy, declaring that he could shoot him if a fight broke out before the event. As expected, the organization reduced the number of promotional face-offs between the athletes, reinforced security, and devised a plan to prevent them and their team members from meeting backstage.

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In any case, Khamzat didn't seem intimidated by the bad boy's strong words. In fact, this wasn't the first time the Chechen had touched on the subject of 'death' before his fights. Displaying courage and poise, the UFC champion stressed that Strickland only threatened him because he knows they are being monitored by law enforcement, indicating that his 'tough guy' image is just a facade.

“Someone said they saw him fleeing the hotel quickly after talking to the journalists. The guy who said he was going to shoot me, that he would do this and that, isn’t here. I don’t know why he’s in other hotels, thinking nobody could control me. We control this guy. It doesn’t matter to me. I’m here to work, I just want to make money and beat someone up. If it’s Strickland, so be it. If not, I’ll beat someone else up. I don’t care. He’s doing his antics. Why should I care?” said the star.

“God willing, I’ll defend the belt and go home. I’m happy to die. Why shouldn’t I face off with that guy? I’m happy to fight and I’ll be happy to face off. Why shouldn’t I? It’s no problem for me. I’m from Chechnya and there, every 100 meters, you see soldiers. So, I don’t care about so much security, about how many people are around here. This is for Strickland’s safety. Ask Dana. I’m just a UFC fighter,” he concluded.

Chimaev's fighters in MMA

Khamzat ShimaevBorz, 31, is one of the best and most fearsome MMA fighters today. The Russian began his career in the sport in 2018, debuted in the UFC in 2020, and became middleweight champion in 2025. Before that, 'Borz' also excelled in the welterweight division (up to 77,1 kg).

In this modality, the athlete competed in 15 fights and won them all, 12 by stoppage (six by knockout and six by submission). His main victories were against Dricus du Plessis, Gilbert Durinho, Kamaru Usman e Robert whittaker.