UFC 328 went down Saturday night in Newark, NJ with middleweight champ Khamzat Chimaev taking on Sean Strickland in a heated grudge match.
You’ve heard those words all week long no doubt. “Heated grudge match.” UFC CEO and President Dana White claimed the rivalry was “top three” as far as what he’s experienced in his time heading up the promotion. That might be a bit of promotional hyperbole, but Strickland had called Chimaev every name in the book, alleged that he was a terrorist, and threatened to shoot the champ’s crew should they jump him ahead of the fight.
Strickland, who previously threatened to murder another opponent, Dricus Du Plessis, prior to their fight a couple of years ago, is no stranger to controversy. Rarely, however, has any opponent seemingly got under the skin of Chimaev, who lost his cool at Thursday’s press conference and fired a kick towards Strickland that either strayed, or was aimed, a little low.
All of that overshadowed a next generation style flyweight title fight in the co-main event, with Joshua Van looking to defend his title for the first time against Tatsuro Taira. Two Asian stars, two fighters born post-2000 (a promotional first), with Alexandre Pantoja nearing his return from injury and Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Manel Kape fast approaching. A big moment for the flyweight division, which feels like it has several options moving forward.
Following UFC 328 at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ on Saturday, tune in for the night’s post-fight press conference above.
