Tsarukyan Details Chimaev's Grueling Ordeal Before Strickland Loss

Arman Tsarukyan has shed light on the arduous weight cut faced by Khamzat Chimaev leading up to his middleweight title defense against Sean Strickland at UFC 328. Chimaev was required to hit the 83.9 kg (185-pound) mark, a task that proved anything but easy.

While Chimaev successfully made weight, he appeared visibly drained. He subsequently lost his title to Sean Strickland via a five-round unanimous decision, a bout where Chimaev's energy levels noticeably dipped after a strong first round. According to Tsarukyan, Chimaev nearly lost the fight before even stepping into the Octagon.

“From day one of training camp, he cut 18.1 kg (40 pounds),” Tsarukyan revealed on the JAXXON Podcast. “Fight week, he had to cut 5.9 kg (13 pounds). On Tuesday, he had to cut about 5.4 or 5.9 kg (12 or 13 pounds). The first 4.1 kg (9 pounds) were easy, but then he got sick at night.”

“He woke up and told us, ‘I feel so weak, I have no energy. I don’t know how I’m going to cut the last 1.8 kg (4 pounds).’ But we pushed him really hard. He didn’t want to do it. He didn’t want to finish the cut, but the team — me and the coaches — we tried to make him make weight. And he did.”

One reason for Chimaev’s significant weight cut was his preparation for a move to the light heavyweight division (205 pounds), rather than a middleweight title defense. Both Tsarukyan and UFC commentator Joe Rogan have echoed this sentiment, though it remains unclear if this was officially discussed between Chimaev and the UFC.

Regardless, Chimaev looked so unwell at the weigh-ins that rumors circulated on social media suggesting he hadn't actually made weight and received preferential treatment from the New Jersey Athletic Commission. Tsarukyan dismissed these claims, asserting that UFC protocols make such deception impossible.

“He made weight because before the official weigh-ins, you go through another weigh-in — the UFC checks you, checks your weight, and everything was fine there. After that, they let you go,” Tsarukyan explained. “If the automatic scale shows 84.4 kg (186 pounds), you can’t go to the official weigh-ins.”

Tsarukyan is also confident that had it not been for the brutal weight cut, Chimaev’s fight with Strickland would have unfolded differently. Following Chimaev’s loss, Tsarukyan also hinted that the judges’ scoring was flawed. He firmly believes Strickland didn't do enough to claim the middleweight title.

“The cut was tough, it was a very rough cut,” Tsarukyan stated. “The next morning he felt good, I asked him. But in the fight, we saw that after the first round he got tired and just started trading blows. Yes, most likely the reason was the weight cut. I haven’t spoken to him yet about the match itself, about the cut and how he felt during the fight, but it’s most likely due to the cut, because here in training he was sparring five rounds non-stop, beating everyone, wrestling for 25 minutes.”

“After the first round, I thought he could do four more rounds like that and the match was ours. But I still think it was a close fight. And in a close fight, the champion should remain the champion, while the challenger should take the belt when he wins convincingly — not just in a close match where they give him the win.”