Tag: Nassourdine Imavov

EXCLUSIVE | Nassourdine Imavov Wants Ngannou vs. Gane In Paris

Nassourdine Imavov Nassourdine Imavov wants to see the upcoming heavyweight unification fight between Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane take place in France. Imavov and Gane both train at MMA Factory in Paris. Ngannou was a former teammate of both men before relocating his camp to the USA. The sport was recently made legal in France. Imavov tells LowKickMMA […]

Nassourdine Imavov 

Nassourdine Imavov wants to see the upcoming heavyweight unification fight between Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane take place in France.

Imavov and Gane both train at MMA Factory in Paris. Ngannou was a former teammate of both men before relocating his camp to the USA.

The sport was recently made legal in France. Imavov tells LowKickMMA that its people have a great appetite for big MMA shows.

“I really believe that the French audience is ready for the big show,” Imavov said. “I mean, since the legalization [of MMA in France] we’ve had like maybe four, to six shows in France and all the shows sold out.”

Imavov says Gane’s recent interim title win has catapulted MMA fandom in France to a new level.

“Especially since the last win of Cyril Gane,” Imavov said. “I mean, everything is crazy in Paris. Everyone that I’m crossing, everyone I’m talking with, everyone is speaking about MMA. I mean, around me it’s all MMA. So yeah, I believe that first of all having the French-speaking Francis [Ngannou] getting the title, becoming a champ had people very focused on MMA. But when Cyril [Gane] won that belt, jeez! It was crazy in Paris. That was crazy all around France. So, people are really pumped. I mean there’s the Olympic games and the transfer of (Lionel) Messi (to PSG) that brought a little bit of a shadow on the belt of Cyril Gane. But still, everyone is talking about the [UFC] belt in France.”

For Imavov, Ngannou vs. Gane simply must take place in Paris.

“That fight will go down as one of the best combat fights in France. Having these two huge men, champs, coming from the same gym, MMA Factory, in Paris. And have them fight for the belt in Paris? That’s crazy. Everything will be settled in the place where everything started. So that would be huge.”

Do you agree with Nassourdine Imavov? Should Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane take place in Paris?

EXCLUSIVE | Nassourdine Imavov Eyes 185lb Top Five After Edmen Shahbazyan

Nassourdine Imavov Nassourdine Imavov believes an impressive win over Edmen Shahbazyan on November 6 at UFC 268 will catapult him into middleweight title contention. ‘The Russian Sniper’ picked up the biggest victory of his career last time out when he stopped Ian Heinisch inside two rounds at UFC Vegas 32. Imavov was quickly booked in another big fight, […]

Nassourdine Imavov 

Nassourdine Imavov believes an impressive win over Edmen Shahbazyan on November 6 at UFC 268 will catapult him into middleweight title contention.

‘The Russian Sniper’ picked up the biggest victory of his career last time out when he stopped Ian Heinisch inside two rounds at UFC Vegas 32.

Imavov was quickly booked in another big fight, this time against Shahbazyan who despite his two-fight losing streak remains one of the most exciting prospects at 185lbs.

In a recent interview with LowKickMMA, the 26-year-old revealed that he and his team have already identified weaknesses in Shahbazyan’s game that can be exploited at UFC 268.

“We already have the game plan on the paper,” Imavov said via his translator Fernand Lopez. “We know what we’re going to do and, we are working to try to bring him to [a true] MMA fight. I’m not going to go there and [just] try to look for a striking [match], or for a wrestling [match], or for a grappling [match]. What I will do is bring him into [an] MMA [fight] and, we think that we know a couple of his weaknesses that we will exploit.”

Nine of Shahbazyan’s 11 wins have come by knockout, but Imavov hinted that his plan is to exchange striking techniques with Ronda Rousey’s prodigy.

“I’m mostly [striking] because I’m a showman, I’m an actual man. I want the fans to be satisfied with the show,” Imavov said. “I will bring the heat on the feet anyway because he’s a good striker. I’m a good one [striker]. And I’m looking to win the fight, but also I want to put on a good show so I can be noticed and get rewarded by fighting a better fighter every time.”

If the fight goes as planned, Imavov expects to be recognized as a true contender at middleweight. He predicts his next bout will come against somebody ranked in the top five.

“It always depends on how the fight ends, how the fight goes, you know, with the style of the fight. But I believe that after the fight people [will] start to really talk about me as a contender,” Imavov said. “I really believe that after that fight, if I sent a good message, as I intend to do, I will be challenging the top five guy. And probably I will be in the running [winning] for the next year for a [a shot at the] strap. I will be trying to be in the [title] discussion.”

How do you think Nassourdine Imavov vs. Edmen Shahbazyan will play out?

EXCLUSIVE | Nassourdine Imavov Eyes 185lb Top Five After Edmen Shahbazyan

Nassourdine Imavov Nassourdine Imavov believes an impressive win over Edmen Shahbazyan on November 6 at UFC 268 will catapult him into middleweight title contention. ‘The Russian Sniper’ picked up the biggest victory of his career last time out when he stopped Ian Heinisch inside two rounds at UFC Vegas 32. Imavov was quickly booked in another big fight, […]

Nassourdine Imavov 

Nassourdine Imavov believes an impressive win over Edmen Shahbazyan on November 6 at UFC 268 will catapult him into middleweight title contention.

‘The Russian Sniper’ picked up the biggest victory of his career last time out when he stopped Ian Heinisch inside two rounds at UFC Vegas 32.

Imavov was quickly booked in another big fight, this time against Shahbazyan who despite his two-fight losing streak remains one of the most exciting prospects at 185lbs.

In a recent interview with LowKickMMA, the 26-year-old revealed that he and his team have already identified weaknesses in Shahbazyan’s game that can be exploited at UFC 268.

“We already have the game plan on the paper,” Imavov said via his translator Fernand Lopez. “We know what we’re going to do and, we are working to try to bring him to [a true] MMA fight. I’m not going to go there and [just] try to look for a striking [match], or for a wrestling [match], or for a grappling [match]. What I will do is bring him into [an] MMA [fight] and, we think that we know a couple of his weaknesses that we will exploit.”

Nine of Shahbazyan’s 11 wins have come by knockout, but Imavov hinted that his plan is to exchange striking techniques with Ronda Rousey’s prodigy.

“I’m mostly [striking] because I’m a showman, I’m an actual man. I want the fans to be satisfied with the show,” Imavov said. “I will bring the heat on the feet anyway because he’s a good striker. I’m a good one [striker]. And I’m looking to win the fight, but also I want to put on a good show so I can be noticed and get rewarded by fighting a better fighter every time.”

If the fight goes as planned, Imavov expects to be recognized as a true contender at middleweight. He predicts his next bout will come against somebody ranked in the top five.

“It always depends on how the fight ends, how the fight goes, you know, with the style of the fight. But I believe that after the fight people [will] start to really talk about me as a contender,” Imavov said. “I really believe that after that fight, if I sent a good message, as I intend to do, I will be challenging the top five guy. And probably I will be in the running [winning] for the next year for a [a shot at the] strap. I will be trying to be in the [title] discussion.”

How do you think Nassourdine Imavov vs. Edmen Shahbazyan will play out?

Report: Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Nassourdine Imavov Set For UFC 268

It appears UFC 268 will be getting a middleweight clash between Edmen Shahbazyan and Nassourdine Imavov. Shahbazyan vs. Imavov has been reported by La Sueur. The bout is expected to take place on November 6 at UFC 268. It has been reported that UFC 268…

It appears UFC 268 will be getting a middleweight clash between Edmen Shahbazyan and Nassourdine Imavov. Shahbazyan vs. Imavov has been reported by La Sueur. The bout is expected to take place on November 6 at UFC 268. It has been reported that UFC 268 could take place inside Madison Square Garden in New York […]

Continue Reading Report: Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Nassourdine Imavov Set For UFC 268 at MMA News.

Phil Hawes Survives Late Onslaught From Nassourdine Imavov – UFC Vegas 19 Results

Imavov HawesNext up on the UFC Vegas 19 main card is a middleweight encounter between Phil Hawes and Nassourdine Imavov. Round 1: Hawes lands a leg kick. He follows it with a couple more as he backs Imavov against the cage. Hawes feints a takedown before throwing a number of huge strikes but Imavov seems to […]

Imavov Hawes

Next up on the UFC Vegas 19 main card is a middleweight encounter between Phil Hawes and Nassourdine Imavov.

Round 1: Hawes lands a leg kick. He follows it with a couple more as he backs Imavov against the cage. Hawes feints a takedown before throwing a number of huge strikes but Imavov seems to be fine as he partially blocked them. Hawes lands another leg kick that nearly drops Imavov. Hawes clinches Imavov up against the fence. Hawes lands some knees but there’s not a lot of action here as the referee provides a warning. Hawes starts to land some punches before taking Imavov down with just over a minute to go. Imavov gets up but is taken right down as Hawes is in side control. Hawes transitions to half guard and lands some shots as the round ends.

Round 2: After some early exchanges, Hawes goes back to clinching Imavov up against the fence as he no doubt is looking to take him down again. Hawes partially takes him down but Imavov gets back to his feet as he remains controlled against the cage. Hawes lands some strikes and knees before Imavov separates. Imavov wobbles Hawes with a left hook. He starts to pour on the pressure but Hawes times a takedown perfectly. Imavov gets to his feet but Hawes has his back. Imavov looks to attempt a kimura but Hawes transitions to half guard and looks to start some ground and pound. Hawes isn’t landing heavy shots but is landing while Imavov is active from the bottom with some elbows. The round ends.

Round 3: Hawes connects with a leg kick. He quickly goes for a explosive takedown but Imavov gets to his feet. Hawes has his back but eventually clinches him up against the fence. Imavov separates and looks to get his striking going. Hawes starts to pressure and back up Imavov though. Imavov blocks a spinning back kick. Imavov slips as he looks to strike and finds himself clinched up against the fence again. Imavov separates and connects again as he wobbles Hawes! Imavov clinches him now but Hawes now takes him to the other side of the Octagon and looks for a takedown with over a minute remaining. Imavov lands a couple of elbows and connects with a big knee. Hawes clinches Imavov against the fence as the fight ends.

Official result: Phil Hawes defeats Nassourdine Imavov via majority decision (28-28, 29-28, 29-28).

Phil Hawes Says he Has Too Many Ways to Win at UFC Vegas 19

Phil Hawes is on a two-fight win streak with the UFC, and he plans on keeping the momentum going on February 20 when he faces Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Fight Night 185 (UFC Vegas 19). Hawes and Imavov were supposed to face each other in January, but th…

Phil Hawes is on a two-fight win streak with the UFC, and he plans on keeping the momentum going on February 20 when he faces Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Fight Night 185 (UFC Vegas 19). Hawes and Imavov were supposed to face each other in January, but the bout was rescheduled, and Hawes shared his […]