White Predicts Chimaev Will Face UFC 312 Winner
After UFC 311 in January 2025, Dana White said Khamzat Chimaev was in line to face the winner of the upcoming UFC 312 middleweight title fight. The prediction became reality: Chimaev later challenged Dricus du Plessis and won the championship before losing it to Sean Strickland in 2026.
At the time, Chimaev was coming off a first-round submission win over Robert Whittaker and was a leading contender at middleweight. UFC 312’s main event paired champion du Plessis with former champion Strickland. Du Plessis retained the belt with a unanimous decision on February 8, 2025.
Chimaev received the title fight and defeated du Plessis by unanimous decision at UFC 319 on August 16, 2025, to become middleweight champion. Strickland was Chimaev’s first title defense, and he beat Chimaev by split decision at UFC 328 on May 9, 2026, reclaiming the title. UFC’s UFC 312 results, UFC 319 results and UFC 328 results document the title’s path.
The path White anticipated took several months to play out. Du Plessis first beat Strickland, then lost the middleweight title to Chimaev; Chimaev later made one defense before Strickland won it back in 2026. The successive official results complete the title timeline beyond the prediction made after UFC 311.
Sources
- Forbes: Dana White’s January 2025 comments
- UFC: UFC 312 results
- UFC: UFC 319 results
- UFC: UFC 328 results
