Khamzat Chimaev and Sean Strickland are set to headline UFC 328, Dana White announced on Thursday, March 12.
The fight will mark Chimaev’s first title defense as undisputed middleweight champ after defeating Dricus Du Plessis back at UFC 319 by unanimous decision.
Strickland, conversely, finds himself back in red-hot form after a dominant performance against Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez on Feb 22, winning the fight by TKO in the third round.
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Why the fight was made
Despite Du Plessis being ranked number one in the division and Nassourdine Imavov ranked two, the case for either to have been given a title shot next was unlikely.
Du Plessis would have been a candidate for potential rematch, but Chimaev’s commanding display against him in their last fight likely hurt his chances.
Imavov, who currently sits on a five-fight win streak, has earned his stripes in the division, but his most recent loss came against Strickland – losing by a clear UD.
Therefore, the headliner between Chimaev and Strickland is purely circumstantial, as well as a result of fans pushing for the match-up after Strickland’s recent showing.
Strickland’s polarizing character and Chimaev’s unrivaled self-confidence will make for entertaining viewing ahead of the fight for fans.
Other news
White also confirmed other key fights in the events leading up to the much anticipated White House card.
Notable confirmed fights include: Aljamain Sterling vs Youssef Zalal (April 25), Beneil Dariush vs Quillan Salkilld (May 2), Arnold Allen vs Melquizael Costa (May 16), Song Yadong vs Deiveson Figueiredo (May 30), and Belal Muhammad vs Gabriel Bonfim (June 6).
UFC 328 Main card
Main event – Khamzat Chimaev v Sean Strickland (Middleweight title bout)
Co-main – Sean Brady v Joaquin Buckley (Welterweight)
Feature fight – Jan Błachowicz v Bogdan Guskov (Light heavyweight)
Second fight – Alexander Volkov v Waldo Cortes Acosta (Heavyweight)
First fight – Ateba Gautier v Ozzy Diaz (Middleweight)
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Michael Davey 
Juliette White 
SportJustSport writers