Controversy from UFC 328 is still hanging over the middleweight title picture after former champion Luke Rockhold said he believes Khamzat Chimaev, not Sean Strickland, should have left with the win last weekend. The fight took place at UFC 328, where Strickland emerged with a split-decision victory and became a two-time UFC middleweight champion.
Rockhold’s reaction taps into a debate that always follows close championship fights in the UFC: whether judges reward late control and momentum or favor optics and expectations coming in. In a division that has lacked stability at the top, a disputed result only adds more pressure on the promotion to clarify what comes next.
According to Rockhold, Chimaev did enough in the championship rounds to earn the decision.
“I think Khamzat won the fight. Khamzat won the fourth and fifth rounds, he controlled the pace at the end of the fight. And that’s what champions do, the ones who deserve the belt.
The result of the fight makes no sense. The only thing that explains Strickland’s win is his underdog status with the bookmakers. Maybe they (the UFC) just wanted Sean to win. Because it’s Sean. But that can be disputed,” Rockhold said in an interview with JAXXON Podcast.
The bigger issue now is what the result means for the 185-pound division. If Strickland moves forward as champion, the UFC has a bankable and highly polarizing titleholder who always generates headlines in the American market. If Chimaev’s team pushes for a rematch, the promotion could have a strong case for running it back immediately, especially if fan reaction continues to center on the scorecards rather than the performance itself.
For Strickland, the stakes were about proving his first title run was no fluke. For Chimaev, this was supposed to be the night he fully legitimized himself as a championship force at middleweight. Instead, UFC 328 may be remembered less for closure than for the argument it created — and that argument could shape the next title fight.