Enter the anytime, anywhere guy of Las Vegas, Sean Strickland, who was coming off five rounds with Jared Cannonier in December, but was willing to go a possible 25 minutes with Imavov this weekend, albeit at 205, not 185 pounds.
All of the above was welcome news to the ears of Imavov.
Fight By Fight Preview | UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs Imavov
“When I had the confirmation that it was Strickland, everything went good,” said the France-based Russian, who now has the chance to move further up the ladder should he beat the higher-ranked Strickland at the UFC APEX.
“When the fight is finished, I will be ranked better than if I fought with Gastelum, so I am very grateful for that,” said the number 12-ranked Imavov of squaring off with the number seven-ranked Strickland, who will be looking to snap a two-fight losing streak that has seen him drop fights to current middleweight champion Alex Pereira and Cannonier. Before that, the veteran standout won six in a row, so he’s not a fighter on the slide. In fact, Imavov believes a win will not only improve his ranking, but possibly be a good omen for eventually winning the title.
“Pereira got a belt after knocking out Strickland,” Imavov laughed. “If that’s the way, let’s go.”
