Khamzat Chimaev Kicks Sean Strickland in Trending Video From Heated Face-Off Ahead of UFC 328

Khamzat Chimaev kicked Sean Strickland in the leg during a Thursday face-off ahead of their upcoming fight at UFC 328.

Strickland later called Chimaev a "coward" for the brief altercation in a social media post.

Chimaev, the current UFC middleweight champion, is set to defend his title against Strickland in the main event of UFC 328.

UFC CEO Dana White, who was present during the face-off, later discussed the kick.

"The security guy from that angle got in the way of the kick and you know, I had Khamzat's arms, I had his arms, I didn't think he'd kick him," White said, via Jamie Theodosi of Bloody Elbow. "I didn't think he was gonna do anything, I thought it was just gonna be a lot of yelling and back-and-forth so, yeah."

The animosity between the two fighters has caused the UFC to add additional security throughout the week leading up to their clash, while Strickland is staying at an off-site location away from Chimaev and his team (h/t ESPN's Brett Okamoto)

Chimaev enters the fight with a perfect 15-0 record, capturing the middleweight title with a victory over Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 319 in Aug. 2025.

There was also a physical confrontation between du Plessis and Chimaev at their face-off before the fight.

As for Strickland, he boasts a 30-7 record heading into the bout. He's coming off a win against Anthony Hernandez on Feb. 21.

UFC 328 will be at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday.