MIAMI – Joe Pyfer likes what he's seen out of Nassourdine Imavov as of late.
Imavov (17-4 MMA, 9-2 UFC) is hoping to secure the next title shot against UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland (31-7 MMA, 18-7 UFC), who upset Khamzat Chimaev to claim the title at UFC 328. Chimaev (15-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) is campaigning for a rematch, but Pyfer thinks the streaking Imavov is more deserving.
Imavov hasn't lost since dropping a decision to Strickland in a short-notice light heavyweight bout in January 2023.
"I think Nassourdine deserves it," Pyfer told MMA Junkie. "He's on a win streak, he's finished guys, he also finished Izzy (Adesanya), he beat Brendan (Allen), who else did he beat? He beat a bunch of guys, and he looks good. He's in his prime, so give
him that title shot. I don't think that Khamzat deserves an immediate rematch. He just won the belt and then he just lost the belt.
"Close fight, yes, but he was talking about moving up to 205, and now he's going to stay, but then he's injured. I don't know. I don't know Khamzat. I don't know what's going on with his health. First and foremost, he needs to take care of his health and be healthy, then he can worry about fighting. My personal opinion, I don't think he should fight injured because it just puts you in a bad spot."
Pyfer even thinks Imavov has made enough strides to dethrone Strickland.
"I think Nassourdine could get it," Pyfer said. "I think he's just at a different level right now. He looks really good, really explosive. It's tough to say because it was a close fight in the first one. I definitely think Sean won, but now they're fighting at their true weight. That was late notice, and Sean was able to beat him, but I think Nassourdine has made improvements. I don't know. Sean Strickland is a tough guy to hit, and I think Dricus is the only one who kind of got his number, so we'll see. But I would say I favor Imavov a little bit."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Joe Pyfer explains why Nassourdine Imavov deserves UFC title shot over Khamzat Chimaev
