UFC middleweight champion Strickland chokes out fan in playful beach grappling session

Sean Strickland put his UFC middleweight title credentials on casual display when he was filmed grappling a fan on a beach, taking him down face-first into the sand, climbing to his back, and finishing with a standing rear-naked choke that forced a tap.

The clip emerged less than two months after Strickland claimed the middleweight strap, and while the encounter was clearly light-hearted, it offered a reminder of the wrestling and submission toolkit that helped him reach the top of the division.

Strickland’s first official title defence has yet to be announced by the UFC. One fighter making his case loudly is Khamzat Chimaev, who took to social media on Monday to demand a rematch following their recent split decision.

“Accept the fight, don’t run, I’ll beat you anyway,” Chimaev wrote. “The sooner this happens, the easier it will be to breathe.”

Whether the UFC moves to book Chimaev as the mandatory challenger or opts for another contender remains to be seen, but the Chechen-Swedish knockout artist is clearly unwilling to let the result of their last meeting go uncontested.