Israel Adesanya vs Nassourdine Imavov Preview & Picks
Israel Adesanya is backed to bounce back with a points win in Riyadh.
Adesanya is on a rough run, but he remains an elite technical striker with great cardio.
‘The Last Stylebender’ can use his skill and huge reach advantage to keep Nassourdine Imavov off him and out-point the Russian over five rounds.
- 3 of Israel Adesanya’s last 4 wins have been by decision
- 3 of Nassourdine Imavov’s four career defeats have been in points
- Israel Adesanya has a 5” reach advantage over Nassourdine Imavov
Israel Adesanya Form
Israel Adesanya is a former two-time UFC middleweight champion and the current #2 ranked contender with a career record of 24-4 (16 KOs).
Adesanya debuted in the UFC back in February 2018 and quickly climbed the ladder with six straight victories.
That earned him a crack at the middleweight title in October 2019 and he took his big chance, knocking out Robert Whittaker in the second round.
‘The Last Stylebender’ then made two successful defences, out-pointing Yoel Romero and knocking out Paulo Costa, before moving up to light-heavyweight.
Adesanya’s bid to become a two-weight champion ended in failure though, as he lost on points to Jan Blachowicz.
A return to middleweight brought a return to winning ways, as he reeled off three straight decision wins to retain his crown, beating Marvin Vettori, Robert Whittaker and Jared Cannonier.
His reign finally came to an end in November 2022 however, as he was sensationally knocked out in the fifth round by Alex Pereira.
Adesanya regained the belt by knocking out Pereira in the second round of their rematch in April 2023, but he has not won since.
The 35-year-old New Zealander lost the title to Sean Strickland by unanimous decision in September 2023, and in his only outing of 2024 he was submitted by Dricus Du Plessis.
Nassourdine Imavov Form
Nassourdine Imavov is the current #5 ranked middleweight contender with a professional record of 15-4 (6 KOs, 4 Subs) with 1 No Contest.
Imavov made his UFC debut in October 2020 and made a successful debut by earning a unanimous decision win over Jordan Williams.
He lost his next fight with Phil Hawes, via majority decision, but rebounded quickly with TKO wins against both Ian Heinisch and Edmen Shahbazyan.
The 29-year-old Russian then beat Joaquin Buckley on points, before seeing his streak end with a unanimous decision defeat in a light-heavyweight defeat to Sean Strickland.
Imavov immediately returned to middleweight for a No Contest with Chris Curtis, before finally getting back to winning ways in 2024.
‘The Sniper’ edged a majority decision over Roman Dolidze to start the year, before knocking out Jared Cannonier and beating Brendan Allen on points.