Sean Strickland has made a career out of dragging elite fighters through unpleasant, painful fights. At UFC 328, he may have done it again in the biggest moment of his career, handing Khamzat Chimaev his first professional loss in a split-decision battle that immediately divided the MMA community.
Many fans believed Chimaev’s takedowns and forward pressure should have been enough to win the fight. Even commentary from Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier leaned heavily toward the champion’s control and aggression.
However, Alexander Volkanovski saw something quite different while reacting live on his YouTube channel. In the featherweight champion’s eyes, Strickland was quietly winning long stretches of the fight despite Chimaev’s pressure.
“I think Sean’s still landing so much more,” he said while watching the fight. “I think still Sean wins. The commentator is acting like Chimaev because he’s pressuring, but I mean, he hasn’t landed nothing.
“He’s (Sean Strickland) sort of like stopping him in his tracks, like as if he’s landing everything.”
Alexander Volkanovski’s reaction to Sean Strickland’s win over Khamzat Chimaev
“The commentators acted like Khamzat was dominating just because he was pressuring forward, but he really wasn’t landing much.
I expected Khamzat to get tired later in the fight, but I didn’t… pic.twitter.com/QhyLBGnMQa
— MMA Pros Pick (@MMA_PROS_PICK_) May 11, 2026
What stood out most to ‘The Great’ was not just Sean Strickland’s jab or takedown defense; it was Khamzat Chimaev fading early.
“I thought Chimaev would have too many rounds in the bank,” he continued. “That’s why I was like, (Sean Strickland) might finish him. That’s why I couldn’t see a winner.
“And then the rounds are going to be, you know, because he’s going to get tired a bit later, and I didn’t expect him to get tired that early. Wow. That’s nuts.”
At UFC 328, he expected ‘Borz’ to get an early advantage through wrestling and control before possibly surviving a late scare from Sean Strickland’s pressure. Instead, he saw the undefeated champion visibly tire much earlier than expected.
So, by the time the scorecards were read, Alexander Volkanovski felt the American had done enough.
“I mean, there were two other rounds where he (Chimaev) got the takedown in the end,” he added. “But it was losing the whole round. So, wow. Sean does it again, man.”
However, it is worth noting that he isn’t the only champion who called out the UFC 328 commentators, as Tom Aspinall also didn’t mince after watching the main event fight.
Tom Aspinall gets annoyed by commentators during the UFC 328 main event fight
For Tom Aspinall, the most frustrating aspect of UFC 328 was not even the judging. It was the way the fight was being described in real time. While the majority of the broadcast team focused on Khamzat Chimaev’s pressure and takedowns, the UFC heavyweight champion thought Sean Strickland’s work was constantly overlooked throughout the main event.
The Briton pushed back repeatedly while watching live, especially when the talk turned to Sean Strickland‘s jab-heavy offense.
“The commentators are saying, ‘Sean has got to land some big shots to win the fight in this fifth round.’” Aspinall said on his YouTube channel. “I know they’re jabs, but he is landing a lot of them. Just because it’s a jab doesn’t mean it’s insignificant.
“It’s still a powerful strike that is causing damage, so I disagree with the narrative that just because they are jabs, they are not effective.”
In the reigning heavyweight champion’s eyes, Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier were acting as though jabs somehow did not count because they were not dramatic power punches.
“The commentators are talking like it’s insignificant just because they are jabs, and it isn’t,” he continued. “They are still doing damage. They are still landing.
“There are significant strikes. You only have to look at Khamzat’s face to know they are good strikes.”
Tom Aspinall also took issue with how frequently the broadcast strayed from the actual fight itself.
“We can’t hear the corner work because Joe Rogan is talking bout how bad Khamzat’s cardio is after all his training,” Aspinall added. “I wanna hear the corner. Stop telling us about Khamzat’s cardio.”
And by the end of the fight, the Briton seemed convinced that the statistics at least justified the split decision result. While admitting that the fight might “go either way,” he pointed directly to the striking numbers and Sean Strickland’s consistency over five rounds as evidence that the final scorecards were not as outlandish as some fans claimed by the end of UFC 328.
