by Will Rogers
Sunday, Jan 26, 2025UFC Fight Night 250 - Adesanya vs. Imavov
Saturday, February 1st
Kingdom Arena - Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
We've seen some high profile boxing matches there, as well as soccer, tennis, golf and wrestling. On Saturday, the UFC is back in Riyadh. Though there have been 20 events in Abu Dhabi, (UAE) this will mark just the second time that Saudi Arabia will have hosted an event. The headliner features Nassourdine "The Sniper" Imavov squaring off against "The Last Stylebender," Israel Adesanya. Other notable names on the card include Michael Page, Shara Magomedov, Sergei Pavlovich and Said Nurmagomedov. Let's take a closer look at the two biggest fights.
The Main Event
Former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya (24-4) is currently laying in the -160 to -170 range, depending on where one plays, against Nassourdine Imavov. The 35-year old Adesanya is off back-to-back losses and has dropped three of his last four. The 29-year old Imavov (15-4) has won three straight. Next week, at UFC 312 in Sidney, current middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis will defend his title in a rematch against Sean Strickland. (Du Plessis and Strickland are the two fighters who just beat Adesanya, while Imavov's last loss came against Strickland.) Both Adesanya and Imavov hope to face the winner of that fight. However, Dana White has already said that number one contender Khamzat Chimaev is probably next in line for a title shot.
Whether or not it leads to a title shot, Saturday's match is very important to both fighters. Adesanya can't afford another loss. This will mark the first time since 2019 that he's fighting in a non-title fight. He's not suggesting retirement but another defeat could cause him to reconsider. On the other hand, an impressive win and he's right back in the conversation.
Adesanya said this about his current mindset: "Same as I've always had it, I never really chased the belt. I always knew it would come around. I knew what I was going to do in the game, I knew it was going to keep coming around. So again, now I just plan on keep winning and it'll circle back. I'm not chasing the belt, but the belt chases me."
Imavov feels that he has a chance to leapfrog Chimaev, if he can deliver an impressive enough victory. “Of course, depending on the performance, I can get the next title shot. It can be Khamzat. The fact that I went for four fights in one year, two top five, two top 10, that’s something very significant."
Prediction: Anything could happen but my feeling is that Adesanya isn't done yet. Alexander Volkanovski recently sparred with The Last Stylebender and said he was in top form. "Didn’t even get close to him," said Volkanovski. However, the most likely outcome appears to be a decision. Imavov has seen four of his last five go the distance. Five of Adesanya's last eight fights have also been decided by the judges.
The Co-Main Event
I had a big play on Shara "Bullet" Magomedov (15-0) in his last fight, an impressive second round spinning back-fist KO of Armen Petrosyan. That was back in UFC 308, at Abu Dhabi. On Saturday, Magomedov puts his undefeated record on the line against English fighter Michael Page. Off a loss in his last fight, the 37-year old Page is now 22-3 for his career. Magomedov, 30 years old, opened as a -160 favorite but the line is now closer to -200. The O/U line for this 3-round middleweight bout is 2.5 over -240.
Four of Page's last five fights have gone the distance. Magomedov has won three of his last six fights by decision. Before that, he'd stopped each of his first nine opponents. Magomedov is blind in one eye but that's clearly never been an issue.
Convinced that he's the better striker and perhaps trying to goad him into staying on his feet, Page said this about his opponent: “I think he will be a lot more stubborn in believing in his ability. So, I think I’d definitely be landing some crazy shots if he decides to go for a takedown, because like I said, I think he in his mind he believes he’s the best when it comes to the striking game. So, it will take a few knocks before he decides to change that, and maybe it might be too little too late. I think he’ll be very bloodied up if he is going for a takedown.”
Bullet countered with: “Michael Page I heard you say that I will bleed in our fight on February 1st. Yes I will bleed, only in yours."
Prediction: Though I mentioned that both fighters have had some recent decisions, getting roughly +200 on the under looks like very fair value. If you're looking for a big underdog payout on Saturday, consider the under 2.5 rounds.
Kingdom Arena - Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
We've seen some high profile boxing matches there, as well as soccer, tennis, golf and wrestling. On Saturday, the UFC is back in Riyadh. Though there have been 20 events in Abu Dhabi, (UAE) this will mark just the second time that Saudi Arabia will have hosted an event. The headliner features Nassourdine "The Sniper" Imavov squaring off against "The Last Stylebender," Israel Adesanya. Other notable names on the card include Michael Page, Shara Magomedov, Sergei Pavlovich and Said Nurmagomedov. Let's take a closer look at the two biggest fights.
The Main Event
Former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya (24-4) is currently laying in the -160 to -170 range, depending on where one plays, against Nassourdine Imavov. The 35-year old Adesanya is off back-to-back losses and has dropped three of his last four. The 29-year old Imavov (15-4) has won three straight. Next week, at UFC 312 in Sidney, current middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis will defend his title in a rematch against Sean Strickland. (Du Plessis and Strickland are the two fighters who just beat Adesanya, while Imavov's last loss came against Strickland.) Both Adesanya and Imavov hope to face the winner of that fight. However, Dana White has already said that number one contender Khamzat Chimaev is probably next in line for a title shot.
Whether or not it leads to a title shot, Saturday's match is very important to both fighters. Adesanya can't afford another loss. This will mark the first time since 2019 that he's fighting in a non-title fight. He's not suggesting retirement but another defeat could cause him to reconsider. On the other hand, an impressive win and he's right back in the conversation.
Adesanya said this about his current mindset: "Same as I've always had it, I never really chased the belt. I always knew it would come around. I knew what I was going to do in the game, I knew it was going to keep coming around. So again, now I just plan on keep winning and it'll circle back. I'm not chasing the belt, but the belt chases me."
Imavov feels that he has a chance to leapfrog Chimaev, if he can deliver an impressive enough victory. “Of course, depending on the performance, I can get the next title shot. It can be Khamzat. The fact that I went for four fights in one year, two top five, two top 10, that’s something very significant."
Prediction: Anything could happen but my feeling is that Adesanya isn't done yet. Alexander Volkanovski recently sparred with The Last Stylebender and said he was in top form. "Didn’t even get close to him," said Volkanovski. However, the most likely outcome appears to be a decision. Imavov has seen four of his last five go the distance. Five of Adesanya's last eight fights have also been decided by the judges.
The Co-Main Event
I had a big play on Shara "Bullet" Magomedov (15-0) in his last fight, an impressive second round spinning back-fist KO of Armen Petrosyan. That was back in UFC 308, at Abu Dhabi. On Saturday, Magomedov puts his undefeated record on the line against English fighter Michael Page. Off a loss in his last fight, the 37-year old Page is now 22-3 for his career. Magomedov, 30 years old, opened as a -160 favorite but the line is now closer to -200. The O/U line for this 3-round middleweight bout is 2.5 over -240.
Four of Page's last five fights have gone the distance. Magomedov has won three of his last six fights by decision. Before that, he'd stopped each of his first nine opponents. Magomedov is blind in one eye but that's clearly never been an issue.
Convinced that he's the better striker and perhaps trying to goad him into staying on his feet, Page said this about his opponent: “I think he will be a lot more stubborn in believing in his ability. So, I think I’d definitely be landing some crazy shots if he decides to go for a takedown, because like I said, I think he in his mind he believes he’s the best when it comes to the striking game. So, it will take a few knocks before he decides to change that, and maybe it might be too little too late. I think he’ll be very bloodied up if he is going for a takedown.”
Bullet countered with: “Michael Page I heard you say that I will bleed in our fight on February 1st. Yes I will bleed, only in yours."
Prediction: Though I mentioned that both fighters have had some recent decisions, getting roughly +200 on the under looks like very fair value. If you're looking for a big underdog payout on Saturday, consider the under 2.5 rounds.
