Sean Strickland says he injured shoulder just 4 days before UFC 328 upset over Khamzat Chimaev

"So I put my hands up, and he f***ing shoots on me. I remember thinking, he had me against he cage, and I was like, 'Dude, if you lose this f***ing fight because you were a f***ing c*** and trusted this man, I'm going to go commit suicide. You are a stupid motherf***er, Sean.' I was so salty, dude."

Despite any bad blood prior to the bout, Strickland put it all aside by the night’s end. He admitted that Chimaev is a “savage” and gave the now-former champ props for continually walking forward.

As for what’s next, a rematch may be in order — but not for Chimaev. According to UFC CEO Dana White, “Borz” has his eyes on a potential move to light heavyweight, which fully opens the door back to Nassourdine Imavov.

The two top-ranked middleweights first met in January 2023 in a light heavyweight clash. Strickland won the fight by unanimous decision and eventually skipped over Imavov for Saturday’s opportunity to challenge Chimaev.

With Imavov as the top contender left in the rankings, Strickland is all for the idea of running things back in their proper weight class.

"I truly believe in UFC rankings. I think they f***ing matter, and I hate when guys jump them, so if that's who it is, let's go,” Strickland said.

Imavov will be glad to hear the new two-time champion isn’t opposed to granting the France-based contender his first career title shot. However, Strickland made it clear that Imavov shouldn’t expect the fight to come on anything but U.S. soil.

"I love the French folks. I don't consider Nassourdine French — I don't know if he even considers himself French. He might live there, but he ain't f***ing French,” Strickland said. “He don't believe in French. He doesn't stand by French people. But I am never leaving this f***ing country again. I ain't going on vacation. I will never fight outside America again. I am a f***ing American, and I will f***ing die in this country."