Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling believes Sean Strickland can definitely dethrone Khamzat Chimaev.
Strickland, who returned to winning ways earlier this year, will be facing the reigning middleweight titleholder, Chimaev, in the main event of UFC 328.
Chimaev and Strickland are former training partners who currently despise each other.
“Tarzan” has claimed he forced “Borz” to quit training, and that Chimaev used to pick on the weaker guys at the gym. Now, “Borz” will look to make Strickland eat his own words when the octagon door shuts at UFC 328.
Aljamain Sterling breaks down what Sean Strickland needs to do to beat Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 328
During a recent sitdown, “Funk Master” gave his two cents on how Sean Strickland can dethrone Khamzat Chimaev.
Sterling believes the American fighter needs to get in Chimaev’s head, make the Chechen-born Emirati doubt his own game, drag him into deep waters, and then take charge of the fight in the championship rounds.
Sterling also added that while “Borz” is the more well-rounded fighter compared to Strickland, “Tarzan” still has a solid chance of beating Chimaev if he can “frustrate” him.
Strickland is going to get into his head, force him to go crazy early on. His [Strickland’s] plan is to defend, get him [Chimaev] tired, and then turn the burners on a little bit… On paper, for sure, Khamzat is the better fighter… But I think Strickland has a really good chance, especially if he can get Khamzat frustrated and make him fight outside of himself.”
Check out Aljamain Sterling’s comments below:
Sean Strickland’s head coach, Eric Nicksick, also has a similar game plan, which they will try to implement at UFC 328.
According to Nicksick, his pupil needs to find a way to stop Chimaev’s “chain wrestling sequences,” which will force “Borz” to stray from his original game plan. After that, the champion will be forced to strike with the challenger, which is exactly what Strickland wants.
Check out Sean Strickland’s coach Eric Nicksick’s comments below:
That said, although “Borz” typically looks to wrestle from the opening second of every bout, ragdolls his opponents, tries to take the back ASAP and force a tap, Chimaev also possesses elite striking. When the moment calls for it, he doesn’t ever shy away from a brawl.
The Chechen-born Emirati is already training with Luke Rockhold, Khalil Rountree Jr., and Arman Tsarukyan and going all out during training sessions.
