Colby Covington predicts Khamzat Chimaev will ‘fold’ Sean Strickland at UFC 328 in Newark
Colby Covington has backed Khamzat Chimaev to come out on top in his first UFC title defence this May in Newark. The UFC 328 headline bout at Prudential Center will see Chimaev step back into the cage for the first time since beating Sean Strickland last August to claim the middleweight belt.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC Colby Covington has backed Khamzat Chimaev to come out on top in his first UFC title defence this May in Newark. The UFC 328 headline bout at Prudential Center will see Chimaev step back into the cage for the first time since beating Sean Strickland last August to claim the middleweight belt. The two have history, having sparred together back in 2022, though reports of those sessions were mixed.
Covington believes that Chimaev got the better of those exchanges and expects a similar outcome when they meet again. It’s also important to note that his opinion isn’t helped by issues outside of fighting, including a political dispute. Colby Covington backs Khamzat Chimaev over Sean Strickland Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC Colby Covington dropped by Submission Radio after his win over Dillon Danis at RAF07 and shared a few thoughts on the fight game.
He mentioned that he’s eyeing a wrestling match with Arman Tsarukyan and has plans to call out Khamzat Chimaev afterwards. And when the discussion got to that Newark main event, Covington replied: “I’m not giving Strickland a chance. Hernandez and Khamzat are completely different levels of grapplers and the way that they approach their strategies.
“I think Khamzat is going to take him down and submit him, obviously Schmo went and watched them spar at Xtreme Couture and he pretty much said it wasn’t competitive. Khamzat was just taking him down and submitting him. “I expect that same gameplan, he’s not going to be stupid and strike and make it a kickboxing fight with Sean.