Jared Cannonier will chase a third straight win when he faces Nassourdine Imavov in the middleweight main event of a UFC Fight Night set for the KFC Yum! Centre in Louisville, Kentucky, on the morning of Sunday 9 June 2024.
Cannonier (17-6) has registered back-to-back wins over Sean Strickland (split decision) and Marvin Vettori (unanimous decision) since losing to Israel Adesanya in a match for the middleweight championship in mid-2022.
The 40-year-old ‘Killa Gorilla’ was slated to face Roman Dolidze on the back end of 2023, but suffered a knee injury (MCL tear). He believes he has put the time recovering from the injury to good use and is confident that he will return to the Octagon a better fighter.
“I’ve been continuing my strength and conditioning and working my striking and stuff like that. I’m still feeling sharp, I’m feeling stronger than ever,” said Cannonier.
“I’ve made a lot of improvements since my last fight, and even since the injury I’ve made more improvements. The injury occurred and I feel like when I came back, I’m a better fighter because I’ve been studying and still thinking about this thing.”
Imavov (13-4, 1 NC) was last in action in February of this year, returning to winning form with a majority decision triumph over Dolidze.
The 29-year-old Russian-born Frenchman also believes he is on an upward trajectory and improving as a mixed martial artist.
“I'm still learning from it, forging the athlete I am and the man I am,” said Imavov.“I learned how to channel myself better, but also how to gain even more confidence in my abilities in the different areas.”
He added, “I took the time to learn and now it's time for me to show the fans how this learning process has benefited me. I can't wait to show them a new, more mature, more destructive version of myself.”
The rest of the main card features a light heavyweight battle between Dominick Reyes and Dustin Jacoby; Raul Rosas Jr faces Ricky Turcios in the bantamweight division; two middleweight fights pit Bruno Ferreira and Julian Marquez against Dustin Stoltzfus and Zachary Reece respectively; and the welterweight opener sees Miguel Baeza take on Punahele Soriano.
UFC Fight Night: Cannonier v Imavov – Main card
- Main event: Middleweight: Jared Cannonier v Nassourdine Imavov
- Light heavyweight: Dominick Reyes v Dustin Jacoby
- Bantamweight: Raul Rosas Jr v Ricky Turcios
- Middleweight: Bruno Ferreira v Dustin Stoltzfus
- Middleweight: Julian Marquez v Zachary Reece
- Welterweight: Miguel Baeza v Punahele Soriano