UFC welterweight prospect Khamzat Chimaev was praised by middleweight fighter Sean Strickland after they had “good f*cking wars” in sparring.

Chimaev hasn’t fought since last year when he knocked out Gerald Meerschaert in just 17 seconds due to a number of health issues. However, he is now ready to go and is set to make his return to the Octagon this fall, when he takes on top-15 ranked welterweight Li Jingliang in his comeback fight. Ahead of his return to the cage, Chimaev spent time at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas doing some training, and as part of his time there he got to spar with Strickland, who fights Uriah Hall this weekend in the headliner of UFC Vegas 33.

Speaking to MMA reporter James Lynch ahead of his fight against Hall this weekend, Strickland was asked about how his training sessions with Chimaev went. As far as “Tarzan” goes, Chimaev was an absolute stud in the gym and is the type of fighter who Strickland says he likes to train with because Chimaev works hard and never stops going.

“He was in town for a few weeks, man (in Las Vegas). He was fun. We had good f*cking wars. He’s the kind of guy that, as far as a training partner goes, he fits the bill for me. He doesn’t stop, he trains f*cking hard. He’s another guy if you’re fighting him, it has to be to the death. You can’t go in there thinking, ‘I’m going to point fight you and win.’ Like no, you have to go in there saying ‘one of us is going to die.’ If you don’t have that mindset, he’s going to f*cking steamroll you,” Strickland said of Chimaev.

How excited are you to see Khamzat Chimaev return to the Octagon this fall against Li Jingliang at UFC 267?