Joe Rogan: Khamzat Chimaev bulking up could have factored in UFC 328 loss

Joe Rogan thinks Khamzat Chimaev's big weight cut was a result in him gearing up for light heavyweight.

Chimaev was last to the scales for his middleweight title defense against Sean Strickland in Saturday's UFC 328 main event at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. Although he made 185 pounds on the dot, there was controversy surrounding how quickly his weight was read.

Chimaev (15-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) wound up losing a split decision to Strickland (31-7 MMA, 18-7 UFC), where he slowed down considerably in Round 2, before catching a second wind.

"It was an incredible fight, an incredibly close fight," Rogan said after UFC 328 (h/t UFC on Paramount+). "Sean knew him from training. They both knew each other from training. So there's that element to it that they kind of knew what to expect because they had interacted with each other before, at least in a sparring way.

"But man, what a fight. It's one of those fights where both guys just drained the tank, particularly in that fifth round. You could see as Sean's hitting him, everything they had, they emptied it out. The scorecards reflected that. It was so close."

Whether Chimaev stays at middleweight or goes up to light heavyweight remains to be seen. "Borz" told Dana White immediately after the fight that he wants to move up to 205 pounds, but has since changed his tune by calling for a rematch against Strickland.

Rogan thinks Chimaev looked gaunt at the scales during weigh-ins because he never expected to fight Strickland.

"It was a good question because it could have been a factor, the fact that he did try to bulk up," Rogan said. "He was thinking that he was going to fight Jiri Prochazka for 205."

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Joe Rogan on factor that could have played into Chimaev's UFC 328 loss