Khamzat Chimaev may have lost his intimidation factor if Dustin Poirier’s assessment proves to be true.

Chimaev suffered the first loss of his pro MMA career this past Saturday and dropped the UFC Middleweight Championship in the process. “Borz” failed to make his first title defense a successful one in the UFC 328 main event. Sean Strickland had an answer for Chimaev’s grappling after the opening frame, and he made their title bout a dog fight.

Ultimately, Strickland won the bout via split decision and he now enters his second reign as the 185-pound king. During the UFC 328 post-fight show on Paramount+, Poirier questioned the impact that the loss to Strickland has on Chimaev’s aura (via MMAJunkie).

“The next fight, whoever he gets matched up with, it’s going to be tough for him to intimidate because his aura took a hit this week,” Poirier said. “With the back-and-forth, I thought it was real. I think his whole aura took a hit this week. And putting the belt on (Strickland) – like, come on, man. They worked us for sure.”

Chimaev had been in competitive fights prior to the Strickland bout. He had a war with Gilbert Burns that went the distance and he had a highly competitive scrap with Kamaru Usman. Still, “Borz” had the reputation for dominating all of his other opposition. In fact, he had nearly 22 minutes of control time in his middleweight title win over Dricus du Plessis back in Aug. 2025.

Many have been wondering if the weight cut played a role in Chimaev preferring to spend his energy standing against Strickland instead of going for more takedowns. Despite the weight concerns, “Borz” appears to want a title rematch. This goes against what UFC CEO Dana White has claimed. White informed media members that Chimaev told him he is moving up to light heavyweight.

Do you think Khamzat Chimaev’s aura has taken a big hit following UFC 328? Share your thoughts below.