Caio Borralho Sees Sean Strickland as the Primary Threat to Khamzat Chimaev's Reign

UFC middleweight Caio Borralho has voiced his opinion that former champion Sean Strickland stands a better chance of unseating current middleweight king Khamzat Chimaev than Nassourdine Imavov, despite Imavov's impressive five-fight win streak and a prior victory over Borralho in 2025.

In a recent discussion with MMA Junkie, Borralho first commended Strickland's stellar performance at UFC Houston, where "Tarzan" secured a third-round TKO victory over Anthony Hernandez, thereby re-entering the title contention picture.

Borralho Backs Strickland Over Imavov Against Chimaev

During the same interview, when pressed to choose between Nassourdine Imavov and Sean Strickland as the fighter with the superior chance against Khamzat Chimaev, Borralho firmly sided with the American.

Despite Imavov, known as "The Sniper," ending Borralho's undefeated streak in the UFC, Borralho expressed greater confidence in his former training partner, Sean "Tarzan" Strickland, when facing the formidable Chechen-born Emirati fighter. He elaborated:

“I think Imavov is the better striker, faster and all that. I felt that. I already fought with one of them and trained with the other, different styles. But I think that Imavov wouldn’t do so good with Khamzat’s wrestling. That’s the way that I think Strickland could go. I don’t know if Strickland could really like wrestle with Khamzat, but I think he could defend a little bit more and make Khamzat a little bit more tired and all that, but we all know that Khamzat’s wrestling is on another level. So, I think your question was if I think he would do better than Imavov. I think so.”

Borralho further elaborated that Sean Strickland's attributes, including his precise jab, relentless forward pressure, unique striking approach, and his demonstrated ability to dictate fight pace and defend takedowns, could collectively pose a significant challenge for the reigning UFC middleweight champion.

Meanwhile, Borralho himself recently returned to winning form at UFC 326, securing a unanimous decision victory over Reinier de Ridder. Following his impressive win, "The Natural" wasted no time in calling out former champion Dricus du Plessis during his octagon interview with Joe Rogan:

“But I have one name in my mind, Joe. Dricus du Plessis, where are you, boy?”