Strickland vs Chimaev – UFC 328: Strickland downs Chimaev on split decision

Sean Strickland has won the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s 185-pound championship for the second time in his career, defeating Khamzat Chimaev via split decision in a bout that never rose to the level of vitriol and threats of violence outside the cage that both fighters engaged in in advance of the main event of UFC 328.

Strickland won two scorecards 48-47, while Chimaev took the third scorecard at 48-47 in front of a crowd of 17,783 fans at the Prudential Center on Saturday.

Strickland, the second former middleweight to regain the title, mimed putting the belt around his waist after the fifth round ended to wrap up a fight where neither fighter ever seemed in serious danger. He had help with his shiny new fashion accessory when Chimaev did the honours for him inside the cage.

UFC beefed up security at hotels, public events, and around the cage for the fight following one of the more loathsome displays – specifically, from Strickland – of trash talk in recent fight history. Strickland threatened to shoot Chimaev and labelled him a “terrorist” because of his ties to Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov.

Chimaev, who lost for the first time in 16 professional fights, is of Chechen ethnicity and fights under the United Arab Emirates banner. He had countered by saying he would “take off” Strickland’s head.

The fighters tapped gloves to start the fight to prove they were professionals, and the prefight hostilities never spilled over into the cage.

The 35-year-old Strickland, who won the 185-pound (84kg) belt in September 2023 and lost it in his first title defence, apologised after the fight to fans of all ethnicities and acknowledged he “went too hard” in weaponising stereotypes to sell the fight.

UFC held its last major card before its June 14 show at the White House, hosted by United States President Donald Trump.

The show – what UFC CEO Dana White dubbed a “1 of 1 event” – is timed for Trump’s 80th birthday and as part of the nation’s 250th anniversary. Trump, who frequently attends major UFC events, did not attend the event in New Jersey.

Van retains flyweight title in co-main event

Joshua Van mauled Tatsuro Taira into a bloody mess in the co-main event and defended his 125-pound (56.6 kg) title in the first UFC title fight contested between two Asian fighters.

Van dominated with superior boxing skills and won via stoppage at 1:32 of round five, with the crowd roaring in his first title defence since he beat Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 323.

Van (17-2) seized control in the second round with a violent right hand to the jaw for the knockdown, and he repeatedly bashed Taira (18-2) in the face. Van failed to finish the round but continued to rip shots throughout the remaining rounds to the face and body, leaving Taira’s face and chest smeared with blood.

Van and Taira marked the first time UFC has held a title fight with both competitors born in the 2000s.

The 24-year-old Van, of Myanmar, has won seven straight fights and 10 of 11 since he signed with UFC – and few were bigger than in the co-main event of UFC’s 11th stop in Newark.

Taira failed in his attempt to become the first Japanese fighter to become a UFC champion.

In other fights of note on the main card, Sean Brady defeated Joaquin Buckley via unanimous decision; King Green choked out Jeremy Stephens; and Alexander Volkov defeated Waldo Cortes-Acosta via unanimous decision.

Miller wins first fight since teenage son’s cancer fight

On the undercard, 42-year-old Jim Miller used a submission victory to boost his record totals for UFC fights and career victories in his first return to the cage since his teenage son beat a rare form of childhood cancer.

A New Jersey native, Miller defeated Jared Gordon in a lightweight bout at UFC 328 with a rear-naked choke at 3:29 of the first round, with his family cheering him on from the Prudential Center. Miller extended his record with 28 career wins in 47 fights under the UFC banner.

Miller also earned his 20th finish, the second most in UFC history.

Wyatt Miller, 14, was diagnosed last year with rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare type of cancer that starts as a growth of cells in soft tissue and is more common in childhood. Wyatt underwent two courses of chemotherapy and five weeks of proton radiation at Rutgers University Cancer Institute and was eventually given a clean bill of health.

“My son went through some really difficult times the last couple of months,” Miller said inside the octagon.

“He’s all good today. He’s cancer-free. One of the things I told him when he first got diagnosed was, Millers have been called a lot of names over the years, but fragile’s never been one of them. He fought his way through it.”

His son’s cancer scare kept Miller out of the cage for 13 months, an eternity for a fighter who made a habit of competing multiple times a year. Miller lost to Chase Hooper in his last fight at UFC 314 in April 2025.