Preview: UFC Saudi Arabia ‘Adesanya vs. Imavov’

Bantamweights

Said Nurmagomedov (18-3, 7-2 UFC) vs. Vinicius Oliveira (21-3, 2-0 UFC)

ODDS: Nurmagomedov (-175), Oliveira (+145)

This is a fascinating bantamweight pairing that should result in some violence. Inactivity has stalled out Nurmagomedov’s ability to regain his momentum from a 2023 loss to Jonathan Martinez, but the Russian is still an intriguing fighter with an approach that has proven more effective than it probably should be on paper. Despite his last name, Nurmagomedov—who is of no relation to the more famous Nurmagomedov family tree—isn’t much of a lockdown wrestler, instead looking to leverage his long and lean frame by staying elusive and throwing out strikes from range. It’s an efficient approach but results in some sharp moments, and if an opponent can close quarters, the Russian does have an ace in the proverbial hole, finding a surprising amount of effectiveness with a tricky guillotine choke. Nurmagomedov can wrestle a bit when pressed, but overall, there’s a sense that his approach is less about consistency and more about trickiness, which resulted in a tough fight when Martinez put together three strong rounds. It’s unclear exactly how that all will fare against Oliveira, due to the Brazilian’s surprising recent success and the fact that there aren’t many clear comparisons for him on Nurmagomedov’s ledger, as he’s a fellow long striker compared to a resume of shorter wrestlers.

Despite about a decade of professional experience, Oliveira still has a young man’s game, as “Lok Dog” has an approach built around a lot of machismo and throwing out wild offense without much regard for what his opponent can bring in return. That looked to set him up for a UFC career high on excitement but low on consistent success, but things have gone swimmingly in the short term, as he scored a “Knockout of the Year” contender in his UFC debut against Benardo Sopai before a surprisingly consistent performance against Ricky Simon, who had trouble closing range in the face of Oliveira’s weapons. As with most fights between tall fighters, it’s hard to tell exactly who will be thrown off more by not having his length as a defensive fallback. Oliveira is certainly the messier fighter and figures to get hit more from range, but he might be more capable of winning a round—or ending the fight—with one or two singular blows. Nurmagomedov has a speed advantage on the feet and a wrestling advantage should things come to that, but this fight is still essentially a toss-up. The pick is Nurmagomedov via decision.

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Adesanya vs. Imavov
Magomedov vs. Page
Pavlovich vs. Rozenstruik
Nurmagomedov vs. Oliveira
Davis vs. Ziam
Naimov vs. Ofli
The Prelims