Join us here at Bloody Elbow for live scores, discussion and play-by-play (main event) when the UFC Vegas 67: Strickland vs. Imavov event takes place from the promotion’s APEX facility in Las Vegas, Nevada , takes place.
The main event of this fight night comes in the light heavyweight division, with late replacement Sean Strickland stepping in for Kelvin Gastelum to face up-and-coming contender Nassourdine Imavov. The fight was supposed to be middleweight, but due to the last minute attack, Strickland weighed almost 10 pounds heavier than Imavov. We’ll find out tonight at the Octagon if that makes a difference.
This will be an ESPN+ show, but it will start a little earlier than usual. The six-fight preliminary card is scheduled to begin at 4:00 p.m. ET / 1:00 p.m. PT on ESPN+. The five-fight main card is also on ESPN+ and that’s scheduled to start at 7pm ET / 4pm PT. For territories outside of the United States, you can view all scheduled competitions on UFC Fight Pass.
Main card:
Sean Strickland vs. Nassourdine Imavov
round 1 – Strickland closes the distance pretty much immediately. He lands right over the top. Nice quick left hook from Imavov. He now controls the distance. Strickland with a nice 1-2. Kick too. Right hook by Imavov. Short elbow by Strickland. Easy step inside. Imavov wades in but doesn’t land. Strickland lands a counterattack on the next change. He’s pushing now. Both miss with big shots. Strickland pinches his opponent against the cage wall. Not long, they break. Front kick by Imavov. Short left of Strickland. Big right hook. Wild to the right of Imavov lands fleetingly, Strickland counters better. 10-9 Strickland.
round 2 – Slow start, mostly just deep kicks and teeps. Strickland ties Imamov to the cage and ends up inside. They break and Strickland lands the final punch of a combo. Imavov cuts him back. you act. Strickland ducks and lands a nice trip takedown, but Imamov pops up immediately. They fight at the fence. You act with rights. Clinch. Strickland lands on the break. Both swing and miss. Imamov connects and Strickland pushes him to the fence. They break and Imavov lands a short shot. Close, but I’m going 10-9 Strickland.
round 3 – Strickland with a combo. Imamov returns fire but eats a counter. Imavov is looking a bit dizzy now. Strickland doesn’t overwhelm him, it’s just a bit slow. Strickland touches him with inside leg kicks and teeps. Strickland with a counter on the left. There is not much going on here. Strickland wins, but Imavov immediately breaks him. Imamov spins but Strickland blocks him. 10-9 Strickland.
round 4 – Strickland lands directly to the right. He goes body head. Another right. Both throw and miss. Front kick to Strickland’s body and a jab. Nice jab from Imamov. Low kicks. Strickland with a quick left. Directly from Imamov. Strickland lands on the body. Much better pace than last lap. Strickland attempted a takedown, but nada. They fight at the fence. Imamov reverses and lands an elbow on the break. 1-2 from Strickland. Imamov circles away. Strickland with a counter combo. Nice push. Another 1-2. 10-9 Strickland.
round 5 – They exchange short shots. Nice lean straight from Imavov as Strickland backs down. Imamov with two counters. Strickland puts Imamov on the fence. He pulls back as Imamov throws big elbows. Back to the clinch. Imamov with a knee to the body and a short right. Wide left hook by Imavov. Strickland ties him up again. Back to the center. Both men are a little tired and it shows their lack of accuracy. Short elbow from Imavov as Strickland tries to tie him up. Nice left by Strickland. Imavov with another knee to the body. He lands a short right hook. uppercut. Strickland is just trying to get him closer. 10-9 Imavov but 49-46 Strickland.
Sean Strickland def. Nassourdine Imavov by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47)
Dan Ige def. Damon Jackson by KO (punches), 4:13 in Round 2
Roman Kopylov def. Puna Soriano via TKO (Strikes), 3:19 in Round 1
Raquel Pennington def. Ketlen Vieira by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Umar Nurmagomedov def. Raoni Barcelos by KO (punch), 4:40 in Round 1
Provisional Map
Javid Basharat def. Mateus Mendonca by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Abdul Razak Alhassan def. Claudio Ribeiro by KO (punch), :28 in Round 2
Mateusz Rebecki def. Nick Fiore by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
Allan Nascimento defeated Carlos Hernandez via submission (rear naked choke) 3:16 of Round 1
Daniel Argueta def. Nick Aguirre by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Charles Johnson def. Jimmy Flick via TKO (Strikes), 4:33 in Round 1
UFC Official Fight Poster for UFC Vegas 67: Strickland vs. Imavov Fight Night Event
WATCH LIVE ON ESPN+ – UFC VEGAS 67 Fight Night: “STRICKLAND VS IMAVOV” & “IGE VS JACKSON”!
SATURDAY 14 JANUARY 2023 – STREAM THE 1ST UFC EVENT OF 2023!
Stream all of the fights being broadcast LIVE from #UFCAPEX in Las Vegas, Nevada HERE! Don’t miss a single second of hard-hitting action!
Watch the middleweight action as 6th-ranked veteran Sean Strickland (25-5) takes on 13th-ranked contender Nassourdine Imavov (12-3) in his back-to-back main event and featherweight appearances Dan Ige and Damon Jackson in the Co-Main – This Fight Night map is also packed with exciting action with matches like: Punahele Soriano vs. Roman Kopylov, Ketelen Vieira vs. Raquel Pennington, Umar Nurmagomedov vs. Raoni Barcelos, and more!