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Dricus du Plessis does not need a long introduction to talk about Sean Strickland. He has faced him twice, for a total of fifty minutes, and knows better than most about the strange way the American turns a high-level fight into a constant war of attrition. While Nassourdine Imavov is still waiting to see his middleweight title shot materialize, the former South African champion offered a clear assessment: if Strickland and the Frenchman meet again, he still favors the belt holder.
An analysis rooted in experience
His opinion is based on two very close fights against Strickland, which he won, but without ever giving the impression that he had cracked the safe without resistance.
Du Plessis did not merely offer a studio prediction. His opinion is based on two very close fights against Strickland, which he won, but without ever giving the impression that he had cracked the safe without resistance. The South African emphasizes a quality that is less spectacular than the strikes thrown while moving forward: Strickland’s ability to remain difficult to control, even when taken down.
According to him, this resistance changed the dynamic against Khamzat Chimaev. Strickland endured grappling phases, but he kept working, getting back up, and refusing static positions. In a division where many game plans collapse as soon as the pace gets ugly, this technical endurance carries significant weight. It also explains why Du Plessis sees the champion as capable of imposing his setting once again: constant pressure, the jab, volume, takedown defense, and five rounds played on the nerves.
Imavov is no longer the fighter he was in 2023
The reminder of their first fight is inevitable, but it can be misleading. Strickland defeated Imavov by unanimous decision in January 2023, in a bout accepted on short notice and contested at light heavyweight. Since then, the Frenchman’s status has changed. His winning streak, built against Roman Dolidze, Jared Cannonier, Brendan Allen, Israel Adesanya, and then Caio Borralho, has placed him in the conversation for the under-84 kg title.
Imavov also says that the UFC asked him to wait for a title opportunity rather than take another fight to stay active. This detail matters: it shows that the Frenchman is no longer merely an elegant contender being tested on a secondary card, but a name solid enough to wait on the verge of a title shot. The question now is whether this wait benefits him or exposes him to losing his rhythm.
The Strickland trap
For Imavov, the danger is not only the memory of a defeat. It is Strickland’s style itself. The American draws his opponents into a linear, sometimes frustrating fight, where every exchange seems simple until the minutes pile up. He advances without much theatrics, cuts off angles economically, defends just enough to disrupt his opponents’ sequences, and forces the other man to produce better than him for a long time.
Imavov nevertheless has real arguments for cracking this pattern. He hits harder than he did in 2023, varies his entries more, and appears better equipped physically at middleweight. His success against Adesanya reinforced the idea that he can manage a very high-level fight without rushing. But against Strickland, pure talent is not always enough. He will have to avoid the rounds that slip away, those five minutes when nothing seems dramatic but the champion checks every box on the judges’ scorecards.
One belt, three paths
This potential Strickland-Imavov matchup goes beyond simply correcting an old result. For the Frenchman, it would be an opportunity to become the first French face at the top of a major UFC division. For Strickland, a successful defense would finally give weight to his new reign. For Du Plessis, it would also be a way to move closer to a third act against a rival he respects as much as he wants to regain momentum against.
Nothing has been made official yet, and that is the point not to gloss over. But the pieces are visible: a champion who has regained his central place, a French challenger who says he has received the sporting green light, and a former king watching the scene with the confidence of someone who has already spent ten rounds in the cage with the man to beat. If the UFC pushes the button, Imavov will at least know one thing: Strickland will offer him neither free-for-all chaos nor a shortcut.