4 Fights We Need to See After UFC Fight Night 235
It wasn't exactly pretty, but Nassourdine Imavov got back to winning ways at Saturday's UFC Fight Night 235 event in Las Vegas.
The Russian-Frenchman was back in action in the card's headlining attraction, taking on Georgia's Roman Dolidze. It was a high-stakes fight for him, as he was riding a No Contest against Chris Curtis and a decision loss to Sean Strickland, but he ultimately left the cage with a majority decision win after five rounds.
Because the win wasn't particularly entertaining or decisive, Imavov probably shouldn't expect a big step up the rankings from his current No. 11 vantage point. However, he is most likely to move into the Top 10, as Dolidze was ranked eighth ahead of the fight, and from there, there are only big fights ahead.
Brazilian lightweight Renato Moicano can also look forward to a big fight in his next Octagon appearance, having picked up a decision win over the always dangerous Drew Dober in the card's co-main event – his second win in a row after a first-round submission of Brad Riddell last time out.
Outside of Imavov and Moicano, the biggest winner of the night was probably Jamaican-American welterweight Randy Brown, who surprised many viewers with a quick knockout of Russian kung fu specialist Muslim Salikhov on the main card. Like Imavov and Moicano, he can also expect a big name on his next bout offer.
Scroll on to see who we'd like to see these three UFC Fight Night 235 winners take on next, along with our pick for Dolidze's next opponent.
Nassourdine Imavov vs. Chris Curtis
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After a tough 2023 that saw him lose a decision to Sean Strickland and suffer a no contest against Chris Curtis, Imavov now has much better footing to start 2024.
Unfortunately, he isn't likely to gain much ground after his Saturday victory. Not only was his fight with Dolidze a bit of a dud, but nearly everybody else in the Top 10 is either booked up or recovering from injuries right now. That leaves him with very few options, and will most likely mean he has to fight down the rankings next time out.
If that's the case, our pick for his next fight is a rematch with Curtis, who happened to be in Dolidze's corner. The pair met last June, and while Imavov seemed to be in control of the early phases of the fight, it was ultimately called off after a clash of heads in round two.
Curtis has expressed interest in a rematch since then, and put himself in good position for that opportunity with a hard-fought decision win over tough Canadian Marc-Andre Barriault last month. Imavov might not like the idea of running it back with the American, but after his uninspiring results of late—his win over Dolidze included—he's not really in a position to call his shots.
Roman Dolidze vs. Paul Craig
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Dolidze didn't get the result he wanted on Saturday, but is unlikely to lose too much ground in defeat for the same reason Imavov isn't going to rocket up the rankings. Their fight wasn't very good.
Still, Dolidze can probably expect to fight somebody else below him in the rankings next time out, particularly given that the Imavov loss was his second in a row after a decision defeat to Marvin Vettori last year.
Our pick for his next opponent is Scotland's Paul Craig.
Craig, like Dolidze, is a former light heavyweight. He made the drop to middleweight last year, and got off to a great start with a violent TKO win over Andre Muniz, but then suffered a lopsided submission loss to Brendan Allen to close out 2023. He's got his back to the wall at the moment, and would probably leap at the chance to take on an established top-10 middleweight like Dolidze.
This one also looks like a fun fight from a fan's perspective, as the pair are two of the bigger, stronger competitors in the weight class, and both have great finishing instincts.
Renato Moicano vs. Dan Hooker
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Renato Moicano's hard-fought decision win over Drew Dober in the UFC Fight Night 235 co-main event pushed him onto a two-fight streak, and brought him to 4-1 in his last five, with his only loss in that stretch coming in a short-notice fight with former lightweight champ Rafael dos Anjos. That's a nice run, and it puts him in position for another big fight in the crowded lightweight division.
The best option for him, at this point, seems to be New Zealand's Dan Hooker.
Ahead of Saturday, Hooker was ranked three spots ahead of Moicano, at No. 10 – and that gap is likely to shrink after Moicano's win over Dober. The Kiwi is currently recovering from the injury that forced him out of a planned scrap with Bobby Green. He might have been rebooked against Green upon his recovery, but Green is now set to fight Jim Miller at UFC 300, which means Hooker doesn't have an obvious dance partner for his next appearance.
Moicano seems like just the guy. They're both excellent lightweights who have struggled too much with consistency to become serious title threats, and they're both known for delivering thrilling fights, win or lose.
Throw it on a pay-per-view main card or book it for a Fight Night co-main event, and get the bonus checks ready.
Randy Brown vs. Michael Morales
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Randy Brown's first-round win over Muslim Salikhov was his first finish since 2021, and his first stoppage by way of strikes since way back in 2019. It was also his second-straight win after a decision defeat of Wellington Turman last time out, and his fifth in six fights. All of that should set him up for a big opportunity—even if a fight with a ranked opponent is still out of reach.
We hope that the UFC matchmakers will pair him with undefeated Ecuadorian Michael Morales.
Morales, still just 24, is 16-0 overall, with four of those wins occurring in the Octagon. That run has put him right on the cusp of the Top 15, but like Brown, he is still a few steps away from a ranked opponent.
Pitting these two against each other will tell us a lot about where they both belong in the welterweight division, and the winner might just be ready for somebody on the outer edge of the rankings. It's also looks like a fun fight on paper—particularly after Brown reminded us of his knockout power over the weekend.
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