Leon Edwards backs Israel Adesanya to defeat Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Saudi Arabia - 'got the beating of him'

Updated 29/01/2025 at 09:56 GMT

All eyes will be on Israel Adesanya and Nassourdine Imavov in the main event at UFC Fight Night in Riyadh on Saturday, February 1. Leon Edwards, speaking exclusively to TNT Sports ahead of the eagerly-anticipated bout, gave his verdict on the likely winner. The English welterweight also offered his thoughts on the intriguing co-main event clash between Michael Page and Sharaputdin Magomedov.

'It's a tough one' - Edwards makes UFC Fight Night picks

Video credit: Eurosport

Leon Edwards has backed Israel Adesanya to beat Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Fight Night in Saudi Arabia.

The two clash in the highly-anticipated main event in Riyadh - live on TNT Sports and discovery+ on Saturday, February 1.

And Edwards, who is preparing for a welterweight bout with Jack Della Maddalena in March, believes Adesanya is the clear favourite.

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"The main event for Saudi, I'll probably go Israel," he told TNT Sports. "I just feel like he's the most seasoned fighter. Izzy should get the finish.

"Imavov, I've seen him fight a few times. I haven't seen much tape on him. But what I've seen, I think Israel [has] got the beating of him."

Adesanya goes into the fight on the back of losses to Sean Strickland and Dricus du Plessis.

Before those setbacks, the Nigerian-New Zealander avenged a defeat to Alex Pereira by beating the Brazilian at UFC 287 in Miami.

But Adesanya has lost three of his last four fights, a run stretching back to that defeat against Pereira in November 2022.

Imavov is on a run of three straight wins, having beaten Roman Dolidze, Jared Cannonier and Brendan Allen in 2024.

'Two unorthodox strikers'

Edwards also turned his attention to Michael Page's middleweight clash with Sharaputdin Magomedov in the co-main event.

While Magomedov has a formidable record of 15-0-0, Edwards predicted a victory for his fellow Brit against the Russian.

"I'm actually interested in that one as well," Edwards said. "It's two unorthodox strikers. I'm looking forward to seeing how [they] match up against each other.

"[Page] wins, probably. [It's] hard, it's a tough one, it's a good fight [that] probably favours MVP. I'd like him to win, obviously he's from the UK as well.

"Even though they're both unorthodox, I feel like MVP's style has been proven against high-level opponents for a longer time than the other guy has, and so that's the reason why I probably give him the victory by decision."

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