
UFC Saudi Arabia featured a shorter 11-fight card and kicked off at an earlier time for North American fans. The co-main and main events featured a pair of promising middleweight showdowns that likely surprised many. The main event, between former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and Nassourdine Imavov, was the only fight from the main card to end with a stoppage. And in the co-main event, a veteran striker in Michael Page outmaneuvered Shara Magomedov to hand “Bullet” his first professional MMA loss. Some interesting matchups to come out of the losers on this card as there are a couple of veterans in eerily similar situations.
Israel Adesanya
Nassourdine Imavov dropped and finished Israel Adesanya to hand ‘Style Bender’ a loss in his first fight without a UFC belt on the line since 2019. Adesanya briefly questioned the stoppage before showing a classy display of sportsmanship with his competitor.
Israel entered the fight ranked at #2 in the UFC’s middleweight division while Imavov came in at #5.
Adesanya has now lost four of his last five fights. That was his third loss in a row. This was his first fight off a PPV card since 2018. Definitely could be a change of tide here for Adesanya, he turns 36 this year and has been through many wars in the octagon. Adesanya’s combat sports career is far from over, but Izzy’s next fight will be a test to see if he is still currently competing on an elite level.
What better fight for Adesanya then to visit an old foe like Paulo Costa. Paulo is just outside middleweight’s top 10 at #11. Costa has also lost three of his last four fights. Costa’s only victory since August of 2019 was against Luke Rockhold in August of 2022. “The Eraser” last fought this past June when he dropped a split decision to Sean Strickland. Plenty of common opponents shared and an identical record in the last four fights. The pair’s first meeting showed just how elite Izzy is, but it was also before he suffered his first loss in MMA in the following fight. That defeat at the hands of Izzy was Costa’s first loss in MMA. Feels like this would be an interesting one to revisit and it would be a good test to reevaluate where Adesanya is at currently.
Adesanya’s next fight: Paulo Costa Rematch
Shara Magomedov
Michael Page outclassed Shara Magomedov to win a unanimous decision in a technical chess match in the co-main event of UFC Saudi Arabia.
A bitter pill for Magomedov to swallow as Page is coming off a loss to Ian Garry at welterweight last June. But definitely not a loss to hang his head about as MVP is as accredited as a point-fighting style striker as it gets.
Magomedov came into this fight just ranked at #14 in the UFC’s middleweight division while MVP was ranked at #15, in the 15lbs. lighter, welterweight division.
Shara’s next fight should be against another rising star that had a misstep in his most recent bout. What about a fight with Ikram Aliskerov? Ikram went 2-0 in the UFC with two first round finishes before stepping in to face Robert Whittaker last June on short notice. The bout didn’t go Aliskerov’s way, but he answered the call against a former UFC champion. Ikram was supposed to face a common opponent in Antonio Trocoli but the bout was cancelled. Aliskerov was supposed to be on UFC Saudi Arabia but his opponent, Andre Muniz, withdrew because of passport Issues. This fight could really shape the future of the division but if it’s not the direction the UFC would like to go in at this time, they could always match Shara up against a guy like Chris Curtis.
Magomedov’s next fight: Ikram Aliskerov or Chris Curtis
Jairzinho Rozenstruik
Jairzinho Rozenstruik gave up a unaimous decision to Sergei Pavlovich in what many fans in the arena felt was a lackluster heavyweight bout. Rozenstruik, much like his opponent, looked hesitant to engage as he dropped his second bout in five fights.
Rozenstruik entered the bout ranked at #9 in the UFC’s heavyweight division while his opponent was ranked at #4.
Sticking to an earlier loser’s edition for this pick. It still seems like a solid matchup for Rozenstruik to take on Serghei Spivac who was finished by Jailton Almedia a couple of weeks ago at UFC 311. Heavyweight really is a crowded division at the top ranks. These two also share common opponents and outcomes with Ciryl Gane (loss), Jailton Almeida (loss) and Tai Tuivasa (win). Making the fight make all the more sense, along with the time frames matching up.
In Rozenstruik’s performance Saturday, Pavlovich’s grappling attack was a large part of what triggered his loss. Spivac’s specialty is his ground game, but would he be able to get past the multifaceted striking of Rozenstruik?
Rozenstruik’s next fight: Serghei Spivac
Said Nurmagomedov
The wheels fell off on Saturday for Said Nurmagomedov as he started off strong but ran into a cardio issue late in his fight with Vinicius Oliveira. The bout scored Fight of the Night honors as the back-and-forth bantamweight scrap was high paced from start to finish. The unanimous decision defeat stings a little more as Said has not competed in the UFC since October of 2023. Nurmagomedov has had four fights canceled since March of 2023 with his withdrawal being the primary cancelation cause of three of those bouts.
Despite the timeframe, Said has lost two of his last three fights and is 7-3 in the UFC since signing in 2018. A good matchup for Said moving forward would be a fight against Victor Henry. Victor was last in action back in November when Charles Jourdain submitted him in the second round. Henry is 3-2, 1 NC in the UFC since signing in 2022. Victor has wins over Raoni Barcelos, Tony Gravey and most recently, Rani Yahya. Although Herny is 37, he is a complete fighter who is a challenge for most on the bantamweight roster and he has faced solid competition.
Nurmagomedov’s next fight: Victor Henry
Mike Davis
Mike Davis had his four-fight win streak snapped by Fares Ziam to start the main card of UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday. The unanimous decision defeat was Mike’s first defeat since his 2019 submission loss then-lightweight Gilbert Burns. Davis is coming off a bicep tear last year that forced him out of a fight with Drew Dober. And now this.
Davis is a fun fighter, and another fun fighter fought on the undercard of UFC Saudi Arabia, Terrance McKinney. Terrance scored a first round TKO over his opponent, Damir Hadzovic, and has now won three of his last four fights.
McKinney has also fought both Dober and Ziam, although he was able to submit the latter in their 2022 bout. This fight could match up with time frame could be one that fans could really like to see. Not to mention, fireworks.
Mike’s next fight: Terrance McKinney