4 Fights We Need to See After UFC Fight Night: Imavov vs. Borralho
After UFC's annual September stop in Paris, the biggest question is whether Nassourdine Imavov is next in line for a title shot against Khamzat Chimaev.
Unfortunately, the event did not make things as clear as many hoped.
Imavov delivered a decisive, unanimous decision win over Borralho in the main event. While undeniably impressive, the Russia-born Frenchman faces stiff competition for a title shot, leaving his immediate future uncertain even after his victory in Paris.
French lightweight Benoit Saint Denis is also facing an uncertain path forward, although the stakes are lower than for Imavov.
After suffering two stoppage losses in 2024 to Dustin Poirier and Renato Moicano, Saint Denis rebounded by defeating Mauricio Ruffy in Paris. Now on a two-fight winning streak, his trajectory is rising, though a title shot remains distant.
Imavov and Saint Denis were the biggest winners of Saturday's card in Paris—at least in terms of the relevance of their fights—but the card was packed with career-changing victories.
One of the best came from former PFL heavyweight champ Ante Delija, who blew away long-time UFC contender Marcin Tybura in his UFC debut. Russian welterweight Rinat Fakhretdinov also impressed on the card, knocking out the highly regarded prospect Andreas Gustafsson inside a round to keep one of the best streaks in the sport alive.
There are a lot of fun matchups to be made in the wake of Saturday's card in Paris, but the ones we're most anticipating involve the four aforementioned men.
Here's what we're hoping the UFC matchmakers do next for Imavov, Saint Denis, Delija and Fakhretdinov.
Khamzat Chimaev vs. Nassourdine Imavov
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Let's not pull any punches. Nassourdine Imavov's win over Caio Borralho was impressive, but a bit underwhelming.
It wasn't the kind of performance he needed to cement himself as the top contender in a division that is crowded with exciting fighters, and definitely not the kind of performance fans required to believe he has any chance against new middleweight champ Khamzat Chimaev.
However, Imavov is officially the No. 1-ranked contender in the division, on the strength of a five-fight win streak built against top-10 foes—most notably former champ Israel Adesanya earlier this year.
On merit, the 30-year-old is deserving of a title shot. His chances of being booked against Chimaev look even better when you consider the fact that the two other top contenders in the division—Reinier de Ridder and Anthony Hernandez—are slated to fight each other in Vancouver on October 18.
If the UFC wants to keep Chimaev active, and the champ's next fight offer is coming soon, Imavov should be next. If the promotion can't get the titleholder's first defense squared away soon, it's possible De Ridder or Hernandez could skip the line with an exciting win in October. That's really what it comes down to.
For now, though, Imavov is the guy. He'll be a be massive underdog against the unbeaten champ, but he's more deserving of anyone to prove the oddsmakers wrong at the moment.
Benoit Saint Denis vs. Michael Chandler
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France's Benoit Saint Denis started 2024 as one of the most hyped contenders in the crowded UFC lightweight division.
However, the 29-year-old spent that year getting his butt kicked by Dustin Poirier and Renato Moicano, and he looked more like a flash in the pan than a serious contender when 2025 began.
It's safe to say Saint Denis is bouncing back. After a sorely-needed submission win over Kyle Prepolec early this year, the Frenchman made it two in a row Saturday, when he derailed the momentum of Mauricio Ruffy with another submission victory—arguably his best UFC win to date.
At this point, Saint Denis' decisive losses to Poirier and Moicano are still too recent to tab him as a future title contender, but there is no question he belongs in the division's top 15.
From here, there are a lot of exciting options for the former French Special Forces solder, who bolsters his impressive grappling game with solid striking and unbridled aggression. Our pick would be Michael Chandler, though.
The former Bellator champ is one of the most beloved lightweights of this generation, but he is now 1-4 in his last five. He's due for a step down at the exact moment Saint Denis is ready for another crack at an established contender.
It's the kind of fight neither man would or could turn down, and it's about the closest thing you'll find to a guaranteed bonus-recipient—no matter the outcome.
Ante Delija vs. Sergei Pavlovich
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Even in Ante Delija's losing efforts, it's clear he is a UFC-caliber fighter.
Granted, the bar for succeeding as a heavyweight in MMA is incredibly low—lower than it is in any division bar women's bantamweight—but the Croatian has always been technical, durable and fast.
Fans who watched him in the PFL and M-1 have known all that for a while, but in Paris, he finally proved it to those who didn't know with a quick first-round KO in his UFC debut. That win didn't come against just anybody, either.
Instead, Delija defeated Poland's Marcin Tybura, a former M-1 champ who has been a fixture of the heavyweight top 10 for around a decade. He'd be a tough challenge for anyone, let alone an Octagon newbie.
After his smashing UFC debut, there's an obvious fight to make for Delija: A clash with former interim title challenger Sergei Pavlovich.
The Russian suffered a pair of tough losses to champ Tom Aspinall and top contender Alexander Volkov recently, but he has since rebounded with a pair of measured decision wins over Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Waldo Cortes Acosta.
Those victories have put him right back into title contention, however, he has already fought—and beaten—many of his top-10 rivals, so his next move isn't super clear.
Enter Delija, an experienced and decorated veteran who will not be afraid of the Russian, and is as capable of winning this potential matchup with a stunning KO as he is of losing it under the same terms. This one is obvious.
Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Daniel Rodriguez
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All of the finishers on Saturday's set themselves for big opportunities next time out. That being said, we are most excited about Russian welterweight Rinat Fakhretdinov's next move.
Fakhretdinov was in a weird spot heading into his fight with Swedish prospect Andreas Gustafsson—the slight favorite in their contest.
The 33-year-old was riding a 20-fight win-streak. A few of the earlier wins in the streak came against dubious opposition in small Russian promotions, but it was still impressive.
It was all the more impressive considering his six most recent wins occurred in the UFC, against the likes of Bryan Battle, Kevin Lee and Nicolas Dalby.
His big problem heading into his fight in Paris—and the thing that was keeping him from taking a well-deserved step up—was a conspicuous lack of finishes on his recent resume. He ended up squashing that problem in style on Saturday, stopping a hard-charging Gustafsson inside a minute.
After the win, Fakhretdinov can no longer be denied. He deserves a top-15 foe, and the veteran Daniel Rodriguez seems like the perfect choice.
Rodriguez has been hot and cold in the UFC in recent years, but he is now on a three-fight streak, highlighted by a win over Kevin Holland.
A fight between him and Fakhretdinov is fantastic on paper. They're both measured but powerful strikers, and they have more momentum than the vast majority of their rivals right now. Book it.
