A solid showing from Strickland during the first UFC Fight Night event of 2023.
Sean Strickland made sure his 2023 got started on a positive note.
He snapped his two-fight skid by dominating his way toward a unanimous decision victory over Nassourdine Imavov in a 205-pound main event to headline UFC Fight Night. Judges at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday scored it 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47 for Strickland.
Strickland closed out the UFC's 2022 with a stinging loss to Jared Cannonier last month and entered the Octagon on Saturday night as the aggressor. He immediately closed space and asserted his brand of boxing, immediately putting together one-two combinations.
When he wasn't leaning on his boxing, Strickland was shrewdly forcing Imavov to reset by launching toe kicks and redirecting his momentum altogether by pressing him up against the fence, where he racked up a control time edge of nearly four minutes.
By the end of the five-round affair, Strickland had landed 113 significant head strikes to Imavov's 85 as his persistent boxing frustrated Imavov for 25 minutes.
Strickland walked into the Octagon on Saturday as the seventh-ranked middleweight, making this victory a likely pivotal one toward improving his UFC ranking.
Strickland, who improved to 26-5, called himself a "company man" after the win and said that he'll fight whomever the promotion decides to put in front of him next. He took Saturday night's fight on short notice and after a turnaround of less than a month.
"If I ever touch a belt, I'll be grateful, it'll be an accomplishment but I'm here for the wars, I'm here for the money," Strickland said on the UFC Fight Night post show on ESPN+.
Here's how the entire UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs. Imavov main card went.
DAN IGE!!! Hands of stone with the walk off KO!! #UFCVegas67
😳😳😳 50k don’t play!!! #UFCVegas66
With the walk off…..⚰️⚰️⚰️ @Dynamitedan808 #UFCVegas67
Oh my goodness! Give Dan Ige the bonus right now! As a bloody Jackson was stalking, Ige stepped back and absolutely sat on a vicious left hook that blasted Jackson across the jaw and crumpled him backwards against the canvas. An instant walkoff second-round KO! And that's how you get back into the win column — with a highlight reel, perfectly-timed KO blow.
WHAT A WALK OFF BY @DYNAMITEDAN808 🤯 #UFCVegas67 pic.twitter.com/p2f5xUn34r
Kopylov launched a picture-perfect spinning back kick that detonated on Soriano's midsection and then made it an even more conscious point to attack the body. Moments later, Kopylov blasted Soriano with a liver kick and flurry upstairs with some heavy hands. A brief period after that, he unleashed a left body kick that crunched Soriano's right side and put him in a world of visible pain. Kopylov rushed in with some punches until the ref stepped in and brought the action to a halt. Solid, methodical win from Kopylov.
𝘽𝘼𝘾𝙆-𝙏𝙊-𝘽𝘼𝘾𝙆 wins for Roman Kopylov 👏
[ #UFCVegas67 | LIVE on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/S54CzMbqcR
After three tough rounds, judges see it 28-29 for Pennington, 29-28 Vieira and 28-29 Pennington, who extends her winning streak to five.
🗣 BY SPLIT DECISION!!@RockyPMMA makes it five straight wins at #UFCVegas67 – how did you score that one? pic.twitter.com/qIx5GPXj4W
Pennington landed more significant strikes and that was a major key in this closely-contested tilt.
Vieira, currently ranked second among women's bantamweights, is coming off a victory over Holly Holm in 2022. Meanwhile, Pennington looks to make it five wins in a row. The winner will inch herself closer to a bantamweight world championship shot.
Wow! Nurmagomedov missed with a knee to the body but instinctually threw and connected on a slick left hand that put Barcelos flat on his back. He then added a hammerfist right although it wasn't needed. That left hand knocked Barcelos out cold before his body could hit the mat. Unbelievable first-round KO!
UMAR SHOWED POWER TO END IT IN ROUND 1 😳 #UFCVegas67 pic.twitter.com/XX7cBcICBI
WOW! Umar! #UFCVegas67
The front leg work and stance switching worked perfectly for Nurmagomedov! Seemed to freeze his opponent! Amazing work! #UFCVegas66
Umar is a beast my gawd! #UFCVegas66
Umar Nurmagomedov, cousin of the great Khabib Nurmagomedov, kicks things off against Raoni Barcelos in bantamweight action.
And this main card will be live soon thereafter. Among the highlights was Abdul Razak Alhassan's powerful second-round knockout of Claudio Ribeiro and Javid Basharat getting the nod from the judges in a win over Mateus Mendonca.
STILL UNDEFEATED! 🙌
❄️🐆 @JavidBasharat moves to a shiny 14-0 to kick off 2023 in style for the Bash Bros! #UFCVegas67 pic.twitter.com/e0yub9RE5H
Main card is moments away!
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