The UFC’s upcoming event in Paris, France, continues to take shape with a key middleweight matchup.
At a UFC Fight Night event on September 28 at Accor Arena, Brendan Allen returns to action to take on Nasssourdine Imavov in an important bout for both 185-pound title hopefuls. MMA Junkie confirmed the matchup with multiple sources following a first report from Fight Minds.
Allen (24-5 MMA, 12-2 UFC) recently revealed in an Instagram video that the UFC offered him the matchup, but said he would not take the fight unless it were the main event. As a winner of three straight main events, “All In” did not want to move down the card and travel to his opponent’s home country. He later stated on Instagram Stories that he already signed the contract for the fight before making the video.
Imavov (14-4 MMA, 6-2) gets the opportunity to fight in his backyard. A winner of two straight main events himself, including a controversial stoppage of former title challenger Jared Cannonier, Imavov has his eyes set on earning a shot at the title.
In the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie middleweight rankings, Imavov sits at the No. 6 spot with Allen not far behind at No. 10.
With the addition, the current UFC Fight Night event lineup in Paris includes:
- Renato Moicano vs. Benoit Saint-Denis
- Brendan Allen vs. Nassourdine Imavov
- Joanderson Brito vs. William Gomis
- Nora Cornolle vs. Germaine de Randamie
- Ailin Perez vs. Darya Zheleznyakova
- Matt Frevola vs. Fares Ziam
- Victor Altamirano vs. Daniel Barez
- Da Woon Jung vs. Oumar Sy
