“The Stylebender” is back.
Appearing in what will be his first non-title fight in over five years, two-time former UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya is expected to face Nassourdine Imavov in early February, as announced by the promotion on Saturday.
A clash between Adesanya and Imavov will headline UFC’s February 1st “Fight Night” card from The Venue in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The matchup offers a chance for one of the most prominent middleweight talents of the 2020s to regain his footing.
Adesanya, a fighter who has fought at the top of the 185-pound class since 2019, is coming off a pair of title fight losses from the past year and a half.
The New Zealand-based fighter’s second reign as champ proved to be short-lived in 2023, as a five-round unanimous decision loss to Sean Strickland at UFC 293 ended his run with the belt before a single successful retention of the title.
Due to Adesanya’s long history as a high-profile middleweight, most notably defending his championship five times after gaining undisputed champ status, the 35-year-old was given a chance to regain the title in August of this year against Dricus Du Plessis. The grudge match didn’t go Adesanya’s way, with the former champ succumbing to a fourth-round rear naked choke.
Adesanya undoubtedly is not far from the title picture, currently sitting second in the division. But before any discussions like that could be entertained, Adesanya needs to get another win under his belt.
Rising French talent Imavov will look to play spoiler for Adesanya’s return to the top in February. Imavov is coming off a trio of wins over high-ranked 185-pound fighters from 2024, putting him fifth in the divisional standings.
By the halfway point of 2024, Imavov had already beaten Roman Dolidze in a five-round majority decision and stopped Jared Cannonier in a main event bout. Only adding to his impressive run, Imavov then snapped the seven-fight winning streak of Brendan Allen, getting past him in a three-round decision result just three months back.
A win in February would further strengthen Imavov’s case for a future title shot, earning him a first-time victory over a former champ in the division.
Along with the main event clash, UFC has announced a fight between rising middleweight Shara Magomedov and veteran talent Michael Page for the co-main event of the card.
Magomedov will look to build upon his 15-fight undefeated record, which includes three different performance bonus victories from just the past year. The Russian fighter has become a fixture in UFC’s trips to the Middle East, with the promotion frequently giving him a high-up spot on their shows in Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia.
The last Magomedov appearance, a UFC 308 bout against Armen Petrosyan, saw him score a rare combo of two spinning backfist shots to win via second-round stoppage.
Long-time Bellator fighter Page will be returning after taking a decision loss to Ian Machado Garry in June. 37-year-old Page won his promotional debut back at UFC 299, beating Kevin Holland on scorecards.
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