Nassourdine Imavov reacts to criticism of his victory against Jared Cannonier at UFC Louisville – Mixed Martial Arts

Nassourdine Imavov doesn't think his fight against Jared Cannonier at UFC Louisville was stopped too early.

Nassourdine Imavov won the biggest victory of his career. This weekend, the 28-year-old Frenchman headlined UFC Louisville. While ranked number 8 at middleweight, he faced number 5 Jared Cannonier. In the fourth round, 'The Sniper' hit the American with a back arm before following up with a series of blows (see the finishing). The referee was forced to end the match, and Nassourdine Imavov was declared the winner by TKO.

However, this end of the fight is controversial. Some observers believe that official Jason Herzog stopped the confrontation too early. Nassourdine Imavov spoke on the subject.

Nassourdine Imavov speaks after his victory

During the post-fight press conference, Nassourdine Imavov said the referee had made the right choice in his opinion.

” Absolutely not “ Imavov said when asked if the referee stopped the fight too early. “It’s the referee’s job to decide whether a fighter is able to continue or not. He had already suffered a lot of damage. He would have taken even more if he had continued to fight. So I think it was the right decision to stop the fight.”

Imavov and Cannonier engaged in a competitive duel. The American started very early, but the trend reversed in the second round: “It wasn’t the game plan to start too quickly” explained Nassourdine Imavov. “I do a lot of five-round fights now. It's not the same rhythm. In my opinion, I only lost the first round. I started to dominate at the start of the second round.”

” It's perfect “ continued the Frenchman. “It was exactly what I was looking for. I was looking for a finish. I'd be lying if I said an earlier shutdown wouldn't have been better, but it takes time to finish someone off. Where I'm happy is that a lot of people criticized my cardio, and in this fight I proved that my cardio was very good, finishing it in the 4th round.”

Strickland vs. Imavov: revenge?

After this victory, which is the most important of his career, Nassourdine Imavov already has a target. The Frenchman would like to face Sean Strickland at UFC Paris on September 28.

“Sean Strickland” Imavov said when asked what he wanted next. “He is in front of me. We have already fought at light heavyweights. I would like to get revenge at middleweight in Paris. UFC Paris. September “.

Imavov and Strickland previously faced each other at UFC Vegas 67. The fight was organized in short-notice in the higher category. Much to the dismay of French fans, Strickland was victorious by unanimous decision (see fight summary). However, Imavov intends to take his revenge, and believes that he has not yet reached his full potential.

“What I do know is that I'm 28 years old, I just had a dominant performance against one of the best guys in the division, and I'm not even at my best. I can even progress further. I'm already good enough to get the title, to get the belt. But the further it goes, the better I will be.”

Nassourdine Imavov is on two big consecutive victories after beating Roman Dolidze last February (see the fight summary).

What do you think of Nassourdine Imavov’s victory?