Chimaev vows to 'take his head off' as he rules out move to light heavyweight

Khamzat Chimaev is staying at middleweight and wants Sean Strickland back in the octagon, shutting down speculation about a move to light heavyweight in the wake of his split-decision defeat at UFC 328 that cost him the middleweight title.

Speaking at the RAF 10 press conference on Friday ahead of his wrestling debut against Dillon Danis, Chimaev was unequivocal about his intentions. “Of course, I’m going to go rematch [Sean Strickland],” he said. “I don’t lose the fight, I lost for the judges. Next time, I’m going to go take his head off.”

The Chechen-Swedish fighter acknowledged that the rematch is not yet confirmed, placing the ball firmly in the UFC’s court. “I’m just waiting on Dana [White], Hunter [Campbell] to bring the guy out to the cage,” he said, adding that Strickland has been citing a shoulder injury as a reason for staying away from training.

Chimaev’s performance at UFC 328 was widely regarded as below his usual standard. He started brightly but visibly faded as the fight wore on — a consequence, many observers noted, of a gruelling weight cut. Strickland capitalised on the conditioning drop-off, doing the bulk of his damage on the feet before earning a split decision to become a two-time UFC middleweight champion.

The lead-up to the first fight was marked by genuine animosity. The UFC deployed extra security and kept the two fighters in separate locations to prevent any pre-event confrontation. After the bout, Strickland admitted that some of his more inflammatory comments had been designed to sell the fight rather than reflect deep personal hatred — though Chimaev appears to be treating the rivalry as far from resolved.

While he waits for the UFC to rebook the rematch, Chimaev is keeping himself active through his deal with RAF. His wrestling match against Danis on Saturday represents a return to his combat sports roots, though he was candid about the commercial motivation. “I’m just making money everywhere,” he said. “That’s why we’re fighting this guy as well. He’s a money check for me.”