UFC Vegas 85’s main event featured a key middleweight bout between two of the more technical fighters the weight class.
Roman Dolidze came into this fight off a loss against Marvin Vettori, a closely contested war that didn’t go his way on the scorecards. Before the loss, Dolidze was on an impressive 4 fight-win streak and coming off the heels of 3 big finishes. A win here enters his name right back at the top of the division and could grant him a title eliminator.
Nassourdine Imavov had a tough 2023, with a loss to Sean Strickland to start the year and a no-contest against Chris Curtis to end it. He faces his third straight opponent hailing from the highly acclaimed Xtreme Couture gym in Las Vegas. A win in this fight would ensure Imavov’s name inside the top 10 of the weight class, opening up the door for a potential run at the title.
Imavov started the fight very strong, nearly finishing the Georgian with an impactful flurry of strikes in Round One. Dolidze was able to recover and stay in the fight but wasn’t able to mount much effective offense throughout. A point deduction following an illegal kick to Dolidze changed the complexion of the fight, with both men coming off the break firing. After a couple of big exchanges, Dolidze got the fight to the ground while looking for a kneebar on the Frenchman. The 4th round was the most successful for Dolidze but wasn’t enough to get the win.
The scorecards read (49-44, 48-46, 47-47), giving Imavov a majority decision win in his second career main event.
UFC Fighters React to Nassourdine Imavov Picking Apart Roman Dolidze
What did you think about the controversial moments and scorecards in Nassourdine Imavov’s win over Dolidze? Who should he fight next? Let us know in the comments below.
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