Preview: UFC Fight Night 243 ‘Moicano vs. St. Denis’

Middleweights

#4 MW | Nassourdine Imavov (14-4, 6-2 UFC) vs. #8 MW | Brendan Allen (24-5, 12-2 UFC)

ODDS: Imavov (-230), Allen (+190)

The main event should be more entertaining, but this figures to be the most important fight on the card, since the winner could plausibly wind up in a title fight with some fortuitous timing. Imavov keeps winning, to the point that he now finds himself in the UFC’s middleweight Top 5, but it feels like he has yet to have the one dominant win that truly affirms him as a title contender. Imavov was relatively untested prior to his UFC debut in 2020, so it was unclear how well his approach—built around sniping from range or clinching with his opponents—would translate against better competition. However, a loss to Phil Hawes, an outstanding athlete despite his flaws, was the only real speed bump during Imavov’s rise. It quickly became apparent that his combination of size and strength made him a highly effective bully. After rebounding from the Hawes loss with three clear victories, Imavov seemed ready for a breakthrough year heading into 2023, but things would wind up as a mixed bag. A main event loss to Sean Strickland wasn’t particularly inspiring, as Imavov was unable to do much in the face of the Californian’s consistent pressure, and what looked to be shaping up as a clear win against Chris Curtis ended in a no contest after an inadvertent clash of heads. That lost year didn’t seem to do much to put a damper on the UFC’s enthusiasm regarding Imavov, as his two fights in 2024 have each been headliners. While Imavov won both of those fights, neither felt like much of a statement victory. Imavov’s win over Roman Dolidze was a slog of a decision that didn’t seem to do much for either man, and his last bout against Jared Cannonier was similarly unexciting until Imavov suddenly knocked the MMA Lab mainstay loopy for the finish. Most of the discussion afterwards centered around the stoppage feeling premature, and the result itself has lost some shine after Cannonier’s loss to Caio Borralho in August. At any rate, at some point Imavov will become undeniable as a contender with enough wins no matter how they play out, and he might reach that point with a victory over Allen.

A 2019 alum of Dana White’s Contender Series, Allen immediately established himself as someone worth watching. He packed a lot of fights against a solid level of competition into his regional career, and finishes of Kevin Holland and Tom Breese to start his UFC run affirmed that “All In” would be something a bit more than an action fighter. At the start of his UFC tenure, Allen’s approach mostly centered around pressuring his opponents and looking to initiate some wild grappling exchanges where he could pull out a submission. After a one-sided loss to Strickland halted Allen’s momentum, he made the correct choice to pivot and try to round out his game. Allen’s improvements as a striker happened in fits and starts, with a 2021 loss to Curtis serving as the clearest setback, but he’s now credible enough to cause damage, even if it’s still mostly in the name of putting himself in position to jump on a submission. In his last fight—a narrow decision win over Curtis in their April rematch—Allen showed some wrinkles that suggested he might not be done evolving. While his striking up to that point had centered around straightforward pressure, Allen did well to follow the scouting report of previous Curtis opponents and stayed patient, leveraging his reach in the process. With that said, there’s still not much defense built into Allen’s game, so Imavov certainly has the opportunity to get the win. He might not be inspiring at times, but Imavov has shown a knack for finding big moments of offense when he needs them most, and landing cleanly on Allen could result in a knockout. However, between Allen’s commitment to pace and the submission threat he offers if this turns into a wrestling match, the American does seem prepared to put together three strong rounds and stay ahead on the scorecards. The pick is Allen via decision.

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Carneiro vs. St. Denis
Imavov vs. Allen
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The Prelims