UFC commentator Joe Rogan believes that Sean Strickland has a “legit chance” to defeat UFC middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 328.
Chimaev puts his middleweight title on the line for the first time this Saturday in the main event of UFC 328, which takes place at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Chimaev and Strickland are former training partners who are now bitter rivals. The trash talk between the two in the lead-up to this fight has gotten personal, and you just hope that nothing happens between them during fight week that compromises the bout. Assuming we get to Saturday without any shenanigans happening, we will have a middleweight title fight between two of the best in the world at 185 lbs.
Joe Rogan Thinks Sean Strickland Can Beat Khamzat Chimaev
According to DraftKings Sportsbook, Chimaev is a massive -575 favorite to win this fight. Given he is 15-0 with most of his victories coming dominantly, it makes sense that he’s the favorite in this spot. But Strickland has pulled off several monster upsets during his career, including in 2023 when he beat former champion Israel Adesanya as a massive underdog, and he’s hoping to do the same thing this Saturday when he takes on Chimaev.
Although the betting odds don’t see Strickland having much success in this fight, if you ask Rogan, he has a legitimate chance of pulling off the upset.
Speaking on “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast, Rogan said that he believes Strickland has what it takes to shock the world and beat Chimaev.
“100% he has a shot… Listen to me as an expert, allegedly. He’s got some of the best takedown defense in the game, underrated grappling. Strickland has a legit chance,” Rogan said.
Sean Strickland Will Have to Keep The Fight Standing
For Strickland, the key to beating Chimaev will be to keep this fight standing. If Strickland can keep this fight on the feet, then he will have a shot to win because he is the better striker. We just saw in his last fight against another wrestler, Anthony Hernandez, that when Strickland can keep the fight in his wheelhouse, he has what it takes to beat grapplers.
But if this fight goes to the mat, it is hard to see Strickland having much of any success. Chimaev just beat down former champion Dricus du Plessis for five rounds, and that’s someone who has two wins on his resume over Strickland. MMA math doesn’t always work, but given Du Plessis had success in the grappling against Strickland, it stands to reason that Chimaev will, too.
But that “what if” is what makes this fight ultra interesting. There is no doubt Chimaev will win the fight if it takes place primarily on the ground, as that’s his world. But if, and that’s a big if, Strickland can keep the fight in his realm on the feet, then he can make Rogan look smart and pull off a gigantic upset to win the UFC middleweight title for the second time in his career.
Joe Rogan: Sean Strickland Has ‘Legit Chance’ Against Khamzat Chimaev