Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker believes Sean Strickland faces a daunting task this weekend as he prepares to challenge Khamzat Chimaev in the main event of UFC 328.
Strickland (30-7 MMA, 17-7 UFC) will meet Chimaev (15-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) for the middleweight title at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, but Whittaker (who previously shared the Octagon with the champion) has offered a sobering assessment of the matchup.
Whittaker faced Chimaev at UFC 308 in October 2024, where he was submitted by the Chechen. Drawing from that experience, “The Reaper” has been weighing in on what Strickland can expect when the two meet on Saturday night.
Speaking in an interview with UFC on Paramount, Whittaker pointed to Chimaev’s most recent performance (his dominant title-winning effort over Dricus Du Plessis) as further evidence of the champion’s effectiveness.
Chimaev captured the middleweight belt at UFC 319 last August, controlling Du Plessis over five rounds to secure a decisive victory and establish himself as a force at 185 pounds.
For Whittaker, it’s not just Chimaev’s wrestling entries that pose a problem, but what follows once the fight hits the mat.
“Having been in there with Chimaev, having seen what Chimaev can do once he gets his hands on you, and he will because he shoots from so far away, and he commits wholeheartedly, and he will get you to the mat,” Whittaker said. “It's what happens after. Seeing that he has the cardio to be able to do that for five rounds as well.”
Based on his firsthand experience and Chimaev’s recent run, Whittaker left little doubt about how he sees the fight playing out.
“Mate, gun to my head…Chimaev’s going to run him over.”
