Nassourdine Imavov wins, calls for Khamzat Chimaev’s middleweight title at UFC Fight Night

Middleweight Nassourdine Imavov outlasted Caio Borralho in the main event of UFC Fight Night in Paris, France, Saturday afternoon, as he earned a unanimous decision -- 50-45, 49-46, 49-46.

The fight was one-sided, with Imavov (20-4 MMA) controlling the distance for the fight's duration with clean boxing and pressure volume, not letting Borralho (17-2 MMA) find openings as he entered the fight having finished 62 percent of his wins by KO/TKO or submission. Imanov, who laid claim to the division's No. 2 ranking, was hard on himself about not finishing Borralho as he had planned.

Despite not earning a stoppage victory, he had one message for UFC middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev (15-0 MMA).

"I am next," Imavov said as the crowd erupted during his post-fight speech.

The loss for the No.7-ranked Borralho marked his first inside the UFC, acknowledging Imavov as one of his toughest opponents yet.

"Thank you, Nassourdine, for the respect," Borralho said. "Thank you so much...I think Nassourdine was the better man today. He was very fast, as I was expecting. He did very good in the fight. I couldn't really adapt (my strategy) that much. I wanted to make this fight entertaining for the fans and the UFC. So, I tried to strike with one of the best strikers in the world and that's what you guys saw: a great war."

In the co-headliner, lightweight Benoit Saint Denis secured a rear-naked choke over Mauricio Ruffy at 2:56 of the second round. Saint Denis (15-3 MMA) got a large pop from the hometown crowd, as he became the first fighter to submit Ruffy (12-2 MMA) in his career. Saint Denis said after the fight he wants to remain active this year, even as a possible late replacement at UFC 322 in November at Madison Square Garden in New York if a fight fails to materialize.

Ruffy had not lost since Nov. 2019, as current UFC prospect Manoel Souza (13-1 MMA) knocked him out when both were still early in their careers. At present, the loss to Saint Denis snapped a seven-fight winning streak.

Light heavyweight Modestas Bukauskas delivered a thunderous elbow in Paul Craig's guard to earn a last-second Round 1 TKO win as the horn sounded. Bukauskas (18-6 MMA) has now won four fights in a row, sending the UFC veteran, Craig (17-10-1 MMA), into retirement after four losses in his last five fights.

Craig, 37, was gracious in defeat, in front of a sold-out Accor Arena.

"I'm old, thank you for the memories," Craig said following the loss.

Lightweight Mason Jones railed to earn a second-round TKO at 3:18 over Bolaji Oki by utilizing his ground-and-pound. Oki (10-3 MMA) nearly secured a finish of his own before becoming noticeably tired, opening an opportunity for the finish for Jones. Jones (17-2) clarified in his post-fight interview that nothing Oki threw his way bothered him, but it was a fight he says he can learn a lot from.

In a back-and-forth affair, lightweight-turned-welterweight Axel Sola caught Rhys McKee with a body shot to secure a third-round TKO win at 2:02. Sola (11-0-1 MMA) is now 3-0 this year, as he has finished six of his last seven fights. Meanwhile, McKee (14-7-1 MMA) fell to 1-5 in the promotion, as he was attempting to win back-to-back fights for the first time since April 2023.

The UFC Paris main card kicked off with featherweight William Gomis winning his 13th fight in his last 14 outings by unanimous decision against Robert Ruchala, taking the cards 30-27, 29-28, 29-28. Gomis (15-3 MMA) used his wrestling and several minutes of control time to secure the win, as Ruchala (11-3 MMA) was making his promotional debut.

--Field Level Media