Nassourdine Imavov is embracing the idea of taking on Khamzat Chimaev.
Following his impressive win over Caio Borralho in the main event at UFC Paris on Saturday, Imavov (17-4 MMA, 9-2 UFC) has pulled ahead in the race to be the next challenger for Chimaev (15-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) and the UFC middleweight title.
While Chimaev has looked invincible at times during his rise to the top of the division—none more so than in his recent title victory over Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 319—Imavov isn’t daunted by the prospect of facing the Chechen next.
“It fits me very well. I like to be the underdog,” Imavov said during the ESPN post-fight show following Saturday’s win over Borralho. “When I’m the underdog, I do my best performance.”
While Chimaev is riding an unparalleled winning streak, Imavov highlighted his own recent form when making his case to be next in line for the champion—and warned that he should not be underestimated.
“People said that against [Israel] Adesanya, he was the best striker in the world and that I couldn’t fight with him, but I knocked him out on the feet,” Imavov said during Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “This guy Caio, I didn’t have to fight against him, but I did it. He was coming from a 10-year run of victories, 16 victories and seven victories in the UFC. I fought him, I won every round, and once again I proved that I’m the best. For me, there is no discussion that I’m [not] going to fight for the belt.”
Imavov emerged the clear winner after 25 minutes against Borralho on Saturday, earning all five rounds on one judge’s scorecard. When asked about a potential return, “The Sniper” explained that he would need some time off after sustaining an injury during the fight.
“It happened during the fight, but I had the injury for 10 days or something like that,” Imavov said. “It was bothering me more and more during the rounds, and what happened is my style—especially against someone like Caio—you need to be able to move fast in order to catch him. And I couldn’t do that, so I had to stay in the same place and work a little bit more on my slipping abilities in order to keep winning the boxing exchanges.”
