Sean Strickland is turning up the heat—and the insults—ahead of his middleweight title showdown with Khamzat Chimaev this weekend. The former champion has been on a verbal rampage, branding Chimaev a "coward" and warning that any pre-fight chaos would be entirely on his opponent's shoulders.

The bad blood between these two UFC stars has reached a fever pitch, forcing the promotion to take extra precautions. With UFC 328 fast approaching, officials have brought in additional law enforcement for fight week and the event itself, hoping to keep things under control. But Strickland isn't buying the need for all that security.

"I think the security is pretty not necessary," Strickland said. "But it's like how much money is the UFC making and spending on this fight? Chimaev won't fight me. If he goes and gets one of his 10 friends to try to fight me, they're in line to lose a lot of f***ing money."

The tension has escalated beyond typical trash talk. Threats of being jumped, references to Chimaev's Muslim community, and even mentions of guns have all surfaced in their heated exchanges. Strickland, however, insists he's not the one crossing lines.

"This is again why we go back to Chimaev, and I say he doesn't have f***ing dignity," Strickland continued. "When in my life would you ever hear me say 'I'm going to jump you' or 'my friends are going to jump you' or 'my religion's going to jump you'? It's like, dude, you just act like a f***ing coward. You think my fans would ever jump you? No, because my fans have f***ing dignity."

For Strickland, the blame game is simple: if anything goes down before they step in the octagon, Chimaev will be the one pulling the strings from the shadows. "He's not going to fight," Strickland added. "When have you seen Chimaev do anything? He has his five boys do it."

With the stakes higher than ever—Strickland looking to reclaim his title and Chimaev aiming to prove he belongs among the elite—this weekend's clash at UFC 328 promises fireworks. But first, both fighters will need to make it to the cage without incident. And if Strickland's words are any indication, that's far from guaranteed.