Former UFC Middleweight Champion Sean Strickland did not stop his former training partner Khamzat Chimaev.
During the meteoric rise of Khamzat Chimaev in the UFCachthoek, he is known as a ruthless employee in the gym. Darren Till, former PFL champion Sadibou Sy, and others who have worked with Chimaev, have recommended the unbeaten death work ethics of the undefeated star.
Chimaev is a little more than a week away from challenging UFC Middleweight Champion Dric Du Plessis in the UFC 319 Main Event. Prior to the pay-per-view card, Chimaev hired a new conditioning coach to help him prepare for a potential five-round war against Du Plessis.
While some antics of Chimaev have rubbed some fans out of the cage, he is mainly considered a great teammate in the gym. But not from the perspective of former UFC champion Sean Strickland.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty images
Sean Strickland goes on Khamzat Chimaev after the past training sessions
Strickland and Chimaev shortly trained together in their career at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. A viral clip during one of their training sessions made Strickland sing the praise of Chimaev and claimed that Chimaev was 'better than everyone' in the gym.
Fast forward to 2025, and things are soured between the former teammates.
In a recent interview with Red Corner MMA, Strickland gave a less than flattering assessment of his time training with Chimaev.
“Chimaev is just – -C-,” said Strickland.
“I was there when he withdrew from Covid. I trained with him. There is a video of me, and I had something like 'Oh, you are so good, you are better than everyone', and I am sarcastic.
“You can choose UFC hunters at a high level, but you go and F-set this 1-1 man, but there are boys like Edmen, UFC hunters at a high level, and you choose the 1-1 hunter because you think he is just as high as your opponent. No guy, you choose him AB-“
“He can fight, but mentally he is just a weak man.”
At the moment, Chimaev did not respond to the comments from Strickland. Only weeks ago Chimaev's attempt to make Strickland terribly wrong when he tagged the wrong user on social media.
Strickland fought twice against Du Plessis and is familiar with both sides of the UFC 319 Main Event. He recently shared his prediction for what will happen between Chimaev and Du Plessis on Fight Night.
Sean Strickland shared 'Expert prediction' for UFC 319 Main Event
Sean Strickland recalls training with Khamzat Chimaev and calls him mentally weak 👀😳
“Chimaev is just finished*ng c*nt. I was there when he retired from Covid. I trained with him.
– Red Corner MMA (@redcorner_Mma) 6 August 2025
In contrast to the popular opinion, Strickland predicts that Du Plessis will beat Chimaev on UFC 319. He claimed that stopping Chimaev's Elite is struggling 'is not so difficult' as Du Plessis is preparing to deal with the first setback of his MMA career.
Strickland has not fought against Du Plessis on UFC 312 earlier this year since a crooked defeat. While a former enemy called him for a fight, Strickland got an indefinite suspension after a viral fight after the fight during an MMA event in Las Vegas.
Chimaev earned the title shot after recent middleweight victories over Kamaru Usman and Robert Whittaker. Before he went to the middleweight, Chimaev was probably one victory removed from a challenge for the Welterweight title.
Du plessis vs. Chimaev is one of the largest UFC fights of the year, and Strickland will keep an eye on the action while it unfolds on UFC 319.