Chris Curtis has an opportunity to erase the painful memory of his recent loss to fellow middleweight bruiser Kelvin Gastelum, and it may be quicker (and more successful) than filing an appeal with Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC).
Curtis is being paired off with No. 12-ranked Nassourdine Imavov for the upcoming UFC 289 pay-per-view (PPV) event, locked and loaded for Sat., June 10, 2023 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, according to MMA Fighting.
Prior to his Gastelum loss, Curtis (30-10) starched Joaquin Buckley at UFC 282. The only thing standing in the way of “Action Man” breaking into the Top 10 is his consistency, having spoiled a three-fight win streak by losing to Jack Hermansson last July.
Imavov (12-4) suffered a similar fate when he racked up three straight victories — which includes his own win over Buckley — only to go down on points opposite middleweight lunatic Sean Strickland at UFC Vegas 67 just a few months back.
UFC 289 will be headlined by the women’s bantamweight rubber match between reigning 135-pound champion Amanda Nunes and former division titleholder Julianna Pena. Elsewhere on the card, Dan Ige and Nate Landwehr collide at featherweight.