Dana White reveals plans to keep Khamzat Chimaev and Sean Strickland separated until UFC 328
Some rivalries within the UFC are manufactured and others function such disdain between the fighters that the promotion has to plan forward to attempt and curb any potential violence. It’s secure to say the UFC 328 important occasion between middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev and Sean Strickland falls into that latter class.
The dangerous blood between Chimaev and Strickland is famous at this level and that is going to require the UFC to put measures in place to guarantee these two do not get right into a brawl simply days earlier than the occasion. So UFC CEO Dana White says the promotion is already planning to beef up safety in each means, form and type attainable to keep Chimaev and Strickland separated throughout combat week.
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That consists of nixing the current addition of a pre-fight faceoff staged by Paramount that’s used to hype up an occasion however White would not need Chimaev and Strickland wherever close to one another.
“I hope someone told them [that isn’t happening]”White told Spinnin’ Backfist about informing Paramount about no fight-week faceoff between Chimaev and Strickland. “Because that is the case. Because that is a fact.
“No bullshit, we’re going to beef up security and law enforcement and everything. All of it. Hotels, bumping into each other, all that [kind of stuff].”
As White eluded there, the UFC also plans to put Chimaev and Strickland into separate hotels just to cut down on any risk they might bump into each other in the lobby, elevators or anywhere else where an encounter could potentially erupt into mayhem.
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“Definitely [putting them in separate hotels]”,” White said. “That’s undoubtedly going to occur.”
Of course, the UFC has learned a valuable lesson about these kinds of rivalries in the past, especially after Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz started launching full soda cans at each other during a pre-fight press conference. That led to the UFC actually emptying all cans placed on stage just to prevent another altercation like that from happening.
Despite their best efforts, UFC security has definitely been tested — including McGregor attacking a bus filled with fighters in an attempt to get to Khabib Nurmagomedov. After Nurmagomedov tapped out McGregor when they actually fought, the undefeated Russian leapt over the cage and attacked Dillon Danis, who was cornering the Irish superstar that night.
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Also who could forget Strickland actually diving over several rows of fans and fighters to try and fight Dricus du Plessis at an event before they met for the first time.
In different phrases, the UFC has a variety of work to do to forestall Chimaev and Strickland from punching one another earlier than assembly in the primary occasion in New Jersey on May 9.
