Robert Whittaker knows what it’s like to get manhandled by division kingpin Khamzat Chimaev.
The former UFC middleweight champion went toe-to-toe with “Borz” at the UFC 308 pay-per-view (PPV) event in Abu Dhabi, suffering a cracked jaw and several broken teeth en route to a lopsided submission loss in the “Topuria vs. Holloway” co-main event.
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See the gruesome photos here.
That’s why Whittaker is picking Chimaev to “run over” former 185-pound titleholder Sean Strickland in the UFC 328 headliner on Sat. night (May 9, 2026) at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
“We want to see if Strickland has what it takes,” Whittaker told Paramount. “All the things he’s talking, he talks a big game. He almost convinces me that he can do it. But having been in there with Chimaev, having seen what Chimaev can do, once he gets his hands on him — and he will. Because he shoots from so far away and he commits wholeheartedly and he will get you to the mat. It’s what happens after. Seeing that he has the cardio to be able to do that for five rounds as well, mate … gun to my head, Chimaev is gonna run him over.”
Chimaev has yet to be defeated in mixed martial arts (MMA), sporting a perfect 15-0 record with 12 finishes. At the same time, Strickland has already disposed of one “Khamzat” and may have the skills to upset another.
“Borz” is currently the moneyline betting favorite.
