Israel Adesanya (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
Israel Adesanya’s return date, opponent, and event are official. The former UFC middleweight champion, now ranked No. 2 in the UFC rankings, will return to the Octagon on February 1 against No. 5 contender Nassourdine Imavov.
The fight will headline UFC Fight Night Saudi Arabia as part of Riyadh Season. The 11-fight card was revealed in the social media post below, though the list is not the official bout order.
There is one fight believed to be a part of the card that wasn’t shared on the graphic. An important women’s flyweight tilt between Mayra Bueno Silva and rising contender Jasmine Jasudavicius is listed on ESPN and Tapology as part of the card.
- Israel Adesanya vs. Nassourdine Imavov – Middleweight
- Shara Magomedov vs. Michael Page – Middleweight
- Ikram Aliskerov vs. André Muniz – Middleweight
- Sergei Pavlovich vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik – Heavyweight
- Muhammadjon Naimov vs. Kaan Ofli – Featherweight
- Said Nurmagomedov vs. Vinicius Oliveira – Bantamweight
- Hamdy Abdelwahab vs. Jamal Pogues – Heavyweight
- Jasmine Jasudavicius vs. Mayra Bueno Silva – Flyweight
- Shamil Gaziev vs. Thomas Petersen – Heavyweight
- Bogdan Grad vs. Lucas Alexander – Featherweight
- Terrance McKinney vs. Damir Hadžović – Lightweight
- Abdul-Kareem Al-Selwady vs. Jordan Leavitt – Lightweight
ESPN does have a list of fights structured like a bout order, but there’s some pause in believing this will be official by the time the event rolls around. We know Adesanya vs. Imavov is the main event, and it’s expected that No. 14 Shara Magomedov vs. Michael “Venom” Page will serve as the co-main event.
It would make sense for heavyweight contenders No. 4 Sergei Pavlovich and No. 9 Jairzinho Rozenstruik to feature on the main card, as well as Silva-Jasudavicius. From there, the UFC and ESPN will have plenty of options for structuring the card.
For the first time in his career, Israel Adesanya is on a two-fight losing streak. He’s coming off a loss to Dricus du Plessis in August at UFC 308. Before that, Adesanya lost the middleweight title to Sean Strickland in September 2023. A third straight loss would be devastating for the 35-year-old future Hall-of-Famer’s status as a contender.
Imavov, 28, is moving in the opposite direction. He’s on a three-fight win streak and hasn’t lost a fight since dropping a unanimous decision to Strickland in January 2023. Imavov was a perfect 3-0 in 2024 with wins over Roman Dolidze, Jared Cannonier, and Brendan Allen. A win over Adesanya could position Imavov for a title shot or at least a No. 1 contender’s fight.
The co-main event is almost as intriguing. Few stars are rising as quickly as Magomedov. In a year that didn’t include Max Holloway’s unbelievable KO win over Justin Gaethje, Magomedov’s double spinning-backfist KO of Armen Petrosyan at UFC 308 would have been the knockout of the year.
Magomedov has positioned himself as one of the best pure strikers in the UFC, and that skill will be tested against Page. While the veteran is moving up from welterweight, there’s a chance we could see the best version of Page against Magomedov. He won’t have to worry about Magomedov taking him down. Instead, we should see an entertaining stand-up battle.
Be on the lookout for more definitive information about the full Saudi card, including the bout order.
