Nasourdin Abdoulazimovitch Imavov (born March 1, 1995) is a French

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

who competes in the

Middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have be ...

division of the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

. As of April 11, 2023, he is #12 in the UFC middleweight rankings.

Background

At the age of 9, Imavov started boxing when he arrived in France from

Dagestan Dagestan ( ; rus, Дагеста́н, , dəɡʲɪˈstan, links=yes), officially the Republic of Dagestan (russian: Респу́блика Дагеста́н, Respúblika Dagestán, links=no), is a republic of Russia situated in the North C ...

, Russia with his family in

Salon-de-Provence Salon-de-Provence (, ; oc, label= Provençal Occitan, Selon de Provença/Seloun de Provènço, ), commonly known as Salon, is a commune located about northwest of Marseille in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d' ...

. After that, he discovered MMA and at 19, he moved to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

with his older brother Daguir, where they joined Fernand Lopez's MMA Factory.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Starting his professional career in 2016, Imavov compiled an 8–2 record. He was riding a 5 bout win streak before signing with the UFC, during which time he picked up the Thunderstrike Fight League Welterweight Championship and a first-round beat down of former UFC welterweight

Jonathan Meunier Jonathan Meunier (born August 4, 1987) is a Canadian professional mixed martial artist who competes in the welterweight division. A professional mixed martial artist since 2013, Meunier has also competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Ba ...

at ARES FC 1 on December 14, 2019.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Imavov made his UFC debut against Jordan Williams on October 4, 2020 at UFC on ESPN: Holm vs. Aldana. He won the bout via unanimous decision. Imavov faced

Phil Hawes Phillip Nicholas Fitzgerald Hawes (born January 8, 1989) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Hawes started out as a standout wrestler, winning a national ...

at UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Lewis on February 20, 2021. Despite a late storm by Imavov, he lost the bout via majority decision. Imavov faced

Ian Heinisch Ian Edward Heinisch (born August 5, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional since 2015, he has also competed for the World Series of Fightin ...

on July 24, 2021 at UFC on ESPN: Sandhagen vs. Dillashaw. He won the fight via technical knockout in round two. Imavov faced

Edmen Shahbazyan Edmen Shahbazyan (born November 20, 1997) is an American mixed martial artist competing in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Edmen Shahbazyan fights out of Glendale, California. His older brother, ...

on November 6, 2021 at

UFC 268 ''UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on November 6, 2021, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, United States. Background A UFC Welterwe ...

. He won the fight via TKO due to elbows from crucifix position in round two. Imavov was scheduled to face

Kelvin Gastelum Kelvin Gastelum (born October 24, 1991) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Middleweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Gastelum has competed for the UFC since he won '' The Ul ...

on April 9, 2022, at

UFC 273 ''UFC 273: Volkanovski vs. The Korean Zombie'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on April 9, 2022, at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. Backgroun ...

. However, Imavov was forced to withdraw due to visa issues and the bout was cancelled. Imavov faced

Joaquin Buckley Joaquin Yuconri Buckley (born April 27, 1994) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2014, he has also formerly competed for Bellator MM ...

on September 3, 2022 at

UFC Fight Night 209 ''UFC Fight Night: Gane vs. Tuivasa'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 209'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 67'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on September 3, 2022, at Accor Arena in Paris, Fra ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Imavov was scheduled to face

on January 14, 2023 at

UFC Fight Night 217 ''UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs. Imavov'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 217'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 75'' and ''UFC Vegas 67'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 14, 2023, at the ...

. However, Gastelum was forced to withdraw due to a mouth injury, and was replaced by

Sean Strickland Sean Thomas Strickland (born February 27, 1991) is an American mixed martial artist who currently competes in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since 2008, he is the former King of ...

, with the bout taking place at light heavyweight. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Imavov faced

Chris Curtis Chris Curtis (born Christopher Crummey; 26 August 1941 – 28 February 2005) was an English drummer and singer who was best known for being with the 1960s Beat music, beat band The Searchers (band), The Searchers. He originated the concept be ...

on June 10, 2023, at

UFC 289 ''UFC 289: Nunes vs. Aldana'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on June 10, 2023, at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Background The event marked the promotion' ...

. The bout ended in a no contest in the second round after an accidental clash of heads left Curtis unable to continue due to a severe cut above his eye.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

* Thunderstrike Fight League ** TFL Welterweight Championship (One time)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , NC , align=center, 12–4 (1) ,

, NC (accidental clash of heads) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:04 ,

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–4 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs. Imavov , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–3 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Gane vs. Tuivasa , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, France , , - , Win , align=center, 11–3 ,

, TKO (elbows) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:42 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–3 ,

, TKO (knee and punches) , UFC on ESPN: Sandhagen vs. Dillashaw , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:09 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–3 ,

, Decision (majority) , UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Lewis , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 , Jordan Williams , Decision (unanimous) , UFC on ESPN: Holm vs. Aldana , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...

, United Arab Emirates , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 ,

, TKO (punches) , ARES FC 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:27 ,

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar metropolitan area is estimated at 3.94 million in 2 ...

, Senegal , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Mateusz Głuch , Submission (kimura) , Thunderstrike Fight League 18 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

Kozienice Kozienice (; yi, קאזשניץ ''Kozhnits''; german: Koschnitz) is a town in eastern Poland with 21,500 inhabitants (1995). Located four miles from the Vistula, it is the capital of Kozienice County. Even though Kozienice is part of Lesser Pol ...

, Poland , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Francesco Demontis , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Devil's Cage , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:26 ,

Quartu Sant'Elena Quartu Sant'Elena (; sc, Cuartu Sant'Aleni; ), located four miles East from Cagliari on the ancient Roman road, is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy. It is the third biggest city of Sardinia with a populat ...

, Italy , , - , Win , align=center, 5–2 , Gregor Weibel , Decision (unanimous) , City Cage MMA , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Luzern , neighboring_municipalities= Adligenswil, Ebikon, Emmen, Horw, Kriens, Malters, Meggen, Neuenkirch Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a ...

, Switzerland , , - , Win , align=center, 4–2 , Gary Formosa , TKO (punches) , Centurion FC 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:02 , Paola, Malta , , - , Loss , align=center, 3–2 , Michał Michalski , Decision (unanimous) , Fight Exclusive Night 19 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

, Poland , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Paul Lawrence , TKO (punches) , Centurion FC 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:43 , Paola, Malta , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Yanis Cheufre , Submission (brabo choke) , Fight Night One 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:32 , Saint Étienne, France , , - , Win , align=center, 1–1 , Said Magomed Tachaev , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Gladiator Fighting Arena 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:20 ,

Nîmes Nîmes ( , ; oc, Nimes ; Latin: ''Nemausus'') is the prefecture of the Gard department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. Located between the Mediterranean Sea and Cévennes, the commune of Nîmes has an estimated population of 148,5 ...

, France , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 , Ayadi Majdeddine , Submission (guillotine choke) , 100% Fight 27 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:49 ,

, France ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Imavov, Nassourdine 1996 births Living people French male mixed martial artists Russian male mixed martial artists Middleweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Russian emigrants to France French people of Dagestani descent Russian people of Dagestani descent Sportspeople from Dagestan