Khamzat Chimaev is not losing any sleep over Sean Strickland’s pre-fight threats, and he made his contempt for the rhetoric very clear at the UFC 328 pre-fight media scrum.
Strickland had escalated the already intense rivalry by stating he would be carrying a gun during fight week in case of a physical confrontation with Chimaev or his team. Chimaev responded by dismissing both the threat and the man making it in the same breath.
“Clowns always talk. He’ll stop being a clown if he’s quiet. He didn’t shoot any chickens in the world, how’s he going to shoot a human?”
He then addressed the broader scenario of any genuine pre-fight confrontation, making clear he does not believe Strickland has any intention of following through on his words.
“I don’t think the guy wants a real war outside the cage. If he wanted a real war, he would be dead already. In New Jersey, this is a Muslim community, it’s my home. I don’t think so that he’s going to come with the guns there. Otherwise, it will be a lot of people injured because he’s there.”
Interestingly, the comment that drew a sharper reaction from Chimaev was not the gun threat at all. It was Strickland’s claim that he dominated Chimaev during their time training together at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas, a claim Chimaev flatly rejected while adding some context about the circumstances of those sessions.
“He never had success with me. It’s not going to be different this time as well. I was fighting at 170 at that time. Imagine I beat him at that weight and I was cutting the weight and that time I beat him. Right now, people know how big I am. How hungry I am. It’s good meat. I like white American chicken.”
Rather than viewing Strickland’s escalating trash talk as a distraction, Chimaev said he finds it entertaining and actually wants more of it heading into Saturday.
“I like his talking. He’s good for me. I don’t worry about that I need to talk. He’s talking for everyone. I hope he’s going to talk more. It’s funny to listen to this guy.”
UFC CEO Dana White has already confirmed that additional security will be in place during UFC 328 fight week in response to the elevated tension between the two camps. UFC 328 takes place May 9 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.