UFC CEO Dana White recently confirmed a pair of blockbuster mega-fights for the upcoming UFC Saudi Arabia MMA event on Feb. 1 in Riyadh: Israel Adesanya vs. Nassourdine Imavov and Sharabutdin Magomedov vs. Michael Page, with both contests taking place in the middleweight division.
Adesanya opened as the -186 betting favorite against +144 for Imavov, according to Fan Duel. Similarly, Magomedov leads with a -162 line over +126 for Page. As with most early odds, you can expect these numbers to fluctuate — in both directions — as we get closer to the event, likely to air exclusively on ESPN+.
Adesanya (24-4) is coming off back-to-back losses to Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis and will compete in his first non-title bout in over five years. As for Imavov (15-4, 1 NC), now ranked in the Top 5 at 185 pounds, he’s looking to capture his fourth straight win after disposing of Brendan Allen at UFC Paris last September.
Magomedov kept his undefeated record intact and improved to 15-0 after laying waste to Armen Petrosyan as part of the UFC 308 pay-per-view (PPV) event in October, his fourth straight win under the UFC banner. Page (22-3) is looking to rebound from his first UFC loss after falling to Irish phenom Ian Garry at UFC 303 back in June.