Khamzat Chimaev talks Sean Strickland's "macho man" persona "against the gays", says he beat up the ex-champ in sparring 

Khamzat Chimaev has just made several noteworthy claims about Sean Strickland. The unbeaten Chechen recently spoke to ESPN MMA's Brett Okamoto and, during the course of that interview, touched on several topics, ranging from his opinion on Strickland's persona and the results of their past sparring match.

When asked by Okamoto to explain why he, who has no wins over anyone ranked in the middleweight top 10, is deserving of a title fight, 'Borz', who is never short on confidence, made a stunning claim about the ex-middleweight champion.

"Ask that guy, 'Who was beating you up every day in the gym, huh?' So, how many times I saw, meet that guy? How many times I beat him up? He went to his coach, man. He went to his coach, 'Please, tell this guy, man. Go easy, go easy.'"

However, that isn't all Chimaev had to say about Strickland. He also claimed that 'Tarzan's' hyper-masculine persona was fraudulent, even scoffing at the latter's recent homophobic tirade.

"He trying to, like, he say, 'I'm man, I'm this, I that. I'm against the gays.' He's trying to be some macho man. You're not macho man. When I punched your heart, you went to your coach and said, 'Please, tell this guy, go easy.'"

Check out Khamzat Chimaev criticizing Sean Strickland below (17:38):

The streaking 185-pounder appears to be referencing the past sparring session that several observers have claimed involved Chimaev getting the better of Strickland. Unfortunately, things soon soured between the pair, especially in light of Chimaev now likening himself as Strickland's superior in the octagon.

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Are Khamzat Chimaev and Sean Strickland on a collision course?

After beating Kamaru Usman in controversial fashion at UFC 294, Khamzat Chimaev foresaw a crack at Sean Strickland's newly minted middleweight championship, as Dana White had told 'Borz' that his bout with 'The Nigerian Nightmare' was a title eliminator.

Unfortunately, Chimaev did not convince anyone with his performance against Usman, a welterweight who had stepped in on short notice to face him at middleweight. Now that Strickland has lost the title, he will be in need of a rebound fight. Meanwhile, Chimaev needs a win over a top-10 middleweight.

However, given that Chimaev is ranked No.9, while Strickland is the No.1-ranked middleweight on the roster, a fight between the two is unlikely. The disparity between their two positions at 185 pounds appears too large to justify a fight.