Not everyone is sold on “Borz” being the boogeyman.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight champion, Khamzat Chimaev, is set to defend his title for the first time this weekend (Sat., May 9, 2026) against bitter rival, Sean Strickland, in UFC 328’s main event from inside Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
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Since arriving in the UFC, Chimaev has built a reputation as one of the most dominant — and feared — fighters on the roster. But according to a panel of fighters on the new Paramount+ show Deep Waters, he’s not the scariest man in the promotion right now.
Hosted by Din Thomas and featuring Jorge Masvidal, Dustin Poirier, and Chris Weidman, the discussion turned to whether Chimaev is the scariest fighter in the UFC.
The answer? Not quite.
“Nah, I’d say the scariest guy right now is Ilia Topuria or Carlos Prates,” Masvidal said. “You’re going to sniff me, dude, for 15 minutes and not even throw a shot?”
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“Getting held down [is scary]?” Poirier added.
Thomas pushed back, clarifying he meant the kind of fear a fighter feels just by looking across the cage.
“I look at a guy like Carlos or Ilia and I go, that’s scary because I know if I slip up tonight, I’m going to be looking up lights, thinking what the f—k just happened,” Masvidal continued. “That’s scary.”
Poirier then delivered the line of the segment:
“You bring a pillow when you fight those guys. You bring a Plan B pill when you fight Khamzat.”
Harsh.
Unfortunately, Chimaev’s most recent performance — dominant but boring title win — is clearly fresh in fans’ minds, overshadowing his earlier run of quick finishes, including his jaw-breaking, brutal stoppage of Robert Whittaker.
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With UFC 328 just days away, “Borz” has the perfect opportunity to remind everyone exactly why he earned that fearsome reputation in the first place.
For the latest UFC 328 fight card and rumors click here.
