Nassourdine Imavov successfully notched his first UFC main event win Saturday in a largely dominant performance that also featured some mid- and post-fight drama.
After five rounds of fighting, Imavov (13-4 MMA, 5-2 UFC) defeated Roman Dolidze (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) by majority decision (49-44, 47-47, 48-46). The middleweight bout was the UFC Fight Night 235 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Dolidze survived an onslaught of attack late in Round 1. Imavov dropped him to the canvas, pounded away, grabbed the back and tried more ground-and-pound from there. At the end-of-round horn, Dolidze appeared to be a bit disoriented as he banged a stumbling U-turn back to his corner.
The second round and early parts of the third were a lot of clinching with each man controlling the position at different points. When they separated one minute in Round 3, both appeared to be tired.
Imavov’s right hand proved to be money, with two big ones landing on Dolidze’s dome during Round 3. Dolidze grabbed hold of Imavov and slowed the tempo for a bit, but Imavov landed another big right as soon as separation occurred.
An unusually heated moment occurred in Round 4 when Imavov grabbed hold of Dolidze’s back in the clinch. Dolidze put one hand on the canvas, which made him a grounded fighter, according to the Unified Rules of MMA.
Imavov kicked Dolidze in the head anyway – a foul. Referee Herb Dean called time. The foul, however, caused a reaction from Dolidze’s corner, which included fellow UFC fighter Chris Curtis. Imavov and Curtis fought in June. That bout was ruled a no contest due to a clash of heads.
As Imavov exchanged words through the cage with Curtis, he began to make a move toward his opponent’s corner. Dean intervened and dragged Imavov back tot he opposite corner before he tended to Dolidze, who ultimately gave the high-sign he was good to go.
The foul did not go unpunished. Dean deducted a point from Imavov.
Imavov charged toward's Dolidze's corner 😳 pic.twitter.com/YcirQ5lMiw
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 4, 2024
Although he showed guts throughout the entirety of 25 minutes, Dolidze’s luck in the final five did not change. He hung in there with Imavov, but ultimately lost a unanimous decision.
While Imavov and Dolidze displayed great respect to one another after the fight, the drama involving Curtis continued. Curtis was seen reeling middle fingers up and down at Imavov, who also flipped the bird.
#UFCVegas85 results: Nassourdine Imavov (@Imavov1) def. Roman Dolidze via majority decision (49-44, 47-47, 48-46)
Full coverage: https://t.co/OrDTLIPPTY pic.twitter.com/XVE6aQA6R6
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) February 4, 2024
With the victory, Imavov finds a win for the first time in three attempts. His most recent two outings included a loss to Sean Strickland and the no contest vs. Curtis.
For Dolidze, the bout was his first promotional main event. He has now lost back-to-back fights. His previous outing was in March when he lost to Marvin Vettori.
Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 235 results include:
- Nassourdine Imavov def. Roman Dolidze via majority decision (49-44, 47-47, 48-46)
- Renato Moicano def. Drew Dober via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Randy Brown def. Muslim Salikhov via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:17
- Natalia Silva def. Viviane Araujo via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Aliaskhab Khizriev vs. Makhmud Muradov declared no contest (accidental eye poke) – Round 1, 0:11
- Charlie Radtke def. Gilbert Urbina via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:47
- Molly McCann def. Diana Belbita via submission (armbar) – Round 2, 4:59
- Charles Johnson def. Azat Maksum via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Themba Gorimbo def. Pete Rodriguez via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 0:32
- Jung Gyeong Lee def. Blake Bilder via unanimous decision (30-27 30-27, 30-27)
- Luana Carolina def. Julija Stoliarenko via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 4:52
- Marquel Mederos def. Landon Quinones via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Jamal Pogues def. Thomas Petersen via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 235.
