Victory in the UFC Vegas 67 main event with just five days to go didn’t stop Sean Strickland from setting an unrelenting pace and beating Nassourdine Imavov by over 25 minutes on Saturday night.
In an effort to wash out the bad taste of a close decision from his previous bout just weeks ago, Strickland took the opportunity to replace Kelvin Gastelum so he could return to the Victory Column. A nasty lead jab followed by power punches while constantly marching forward allowed Strickland to make the better exchanges to ultimately secure the win and end Imavov’s three-fight winning streak.
The final scorecards are 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47, with Strickland taking the nod via unanimous decision.
“It was a close fight with Jared [Cannonier] but I won,” said Strickland. “I’m only here because I judged badly. I can fight for 25 minutes. I can fight for an hour.
“The only reason this man hit me is because I wanted to finish him off. I try to aim for those finishes, especially after my last boring fight. I don’t want that attached to my goddamn name.
While Strickland took the win, Imavov didn’t seem to show any nerve early in the fight as he headhunted with big, powerful hooks on his feet and went after his opponent. The quest for the knockout gave Imavov an early lead, but Strickland’s consistency on his feet and forward drive paid off with every passing minute.
Strickland’s ability to move forward and throw punches in bundles seemed to throw Imavov’s rhythm off balance as he kept stepping back and resetting after many exchanges. Stickland stuck to the basics and was only methodical as he repeatedly jabbed Imavov in the face and then followed up with a power punch.
Imavov was finally able to counter after timing Strickland’s punches, which then allowed him to come back over the top with serious heat in his hands. A late elbow strike on the inside also connected when Imavov knocked down Strickland just before the end of the second round.
While still fearing the power that would return to him, Strickland just kept firing at Imavov, frustrating the Russian-born fighter. Strickland’s left jab with the right hand behind always found a home and Imavov didn’t seem to have a great answer for that.
As the fight progressed into the fourth and fifth rounds, Strickland’s pace and attack volume were just relentless, although Imavov didn’t walk away. Unfortunately, Imavov just wasn’t able to stay on target and his power was drained thanks to the grueling strategy he dealt in his face from Strickland by dishing out punches all night.
It was an impressive performance from Strickland, especially given the mitigating circumstances after he started the fight less than a week ago. As for next, Strickland seemed ready for anything the UFC throws at him — especially when they keep paying him so well.
“Whatever the UFC deems me worthy of. I’m a company guy,” Strickland said. “You pay me, I fight Francis Ngannou.”