How to watch UFC Fight Night Saudi Arabia & betting odds for Adesanya vs. Imavov

Find out all the goodies ahead of the early card in Saudi Arabia, headlined by a former champion looking to stay in the mix and a contender whose middleweight run is equally impressive.

Zain Bando | Feb 1, 2025

(Zuffa LLC)

The UFC returns from a week off to begin a stretch of 10 consecutive cards. The promotional tour, if you will, begins Saturday.

Israel Adesanya vs. Nassourdine Imavov

UFC Saudi Arabia is headlined by a five-round middleweight attraction between former middleweight champion and No. 2-ranked contender Israel Adesanya (24-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC) and No. 5-ranked Nassourdine Imavov (15-4 MMA, 7-2, 1 NC UFC).

Dricus du Plessis reacts to Alex Pereira cornering Sean Strickland at UFC 312

Israel Adesanya prepares to fight Sean Strickland during UFC 293 at Qudos Bank Arena. / Jasmin Frank-Imagn Images

Adesanya is attempting to earn his first win in nearly two years. He came up short last August against long-time rival, current UFC Middleweight Champion Dricus Du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC), losing by a fourth-round rear-naked-choke at UFC 305.

The fight marks Adesanya's first non-title bout since Feb. 2019, defeating now-retired Anderson Silva by decision at UFC 234, part of a then-20-fight unbeaten streak.

Israel Adesanya and Anderson Silva during UFC 234 at Rod Laver Arena. / Jasmin Frank-Imagn Images

Despite a 2-3 record in his last five Octagon outings, UFC CEO Dana Whitedisagrees with the potential notion that Adesanya, 35, is on his way out of the sport.

White On Adesanya's Fighting Future

White spoke with The Mac Life to discuss the card and some future promotional plans, addressing Adesanya's career trajectory holistically.

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"Listen, he's already cemented his legacy," White said Friday. "I mean, he's one of the greatest [fighters] ever in kickboxing. To make the transition to MMA and to do what he's done, in the UFC, is unbelievable. Whatever happens with Israel Adesanya, there's no crossroads for him. The guy's an absolute legend. He's one of the best [fighters] to ever do it in all of combat sports. So tomorrow night [against Imavov] is just another night for him."

Adesanya has won five UFC fights by KO/TKO, his most recent in his MMA rematch with current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC), to regain his belt at the time.

Imavov has six wins by KO and four by submission, having won three in a row last year after falling short against former champion Sean Strickland (29-6 MMA, 16-6 UFC).

Nassourdine Imavov backs away from Jared Cannonier during the first round of their UFC Fight Night main event. / Timothy D. Easley/Special to the Courier-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

The card gets underway at 9 a.m. ET/6 a.m. PT with the prelims, followed by the main card at noon ET/9 a.m. PT. All 11 fights stream exclusively on ESPN+ in the United States.

UFC Fight Night predictions for Adesanya vs. Imavov main card and prelims

UFC Saudi Arabia Bout Order & Odds

Odds are courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook as of Friday evening at press time.

UFC Saudi Arabia Main Card (Noon ET/9 a.m. PT ESPN+)

Main Event: Israel Adesanya (-155) vs. Nassourdine Imavov (+130), middleweight
Co-Main Event: Sharabutdin Magomedov (-185) vs. Michael Page (+154), middleweight
Sergei Pavlovich (-285) vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik (+230), heavyweight
Said Nurmagomedov (-166) vs. Vinicius Oliveira (+140), bantamweight
Fares Ziam (+124) vs. Mike Davis (-148), lightweight

UFC Saudi Arabia Preliminary Card (9 a.m. ET/6 a.m. PT ESPN+)

Featured Prelim: Muhammad Naimov (-310) vs. Kaan Ofli (+250), featherweight
Shamil Gaziev (-340) vs. Thomas Petersen (+270), heavyweight
Terrance McKinney (-625) vs. Damir Hadzovic (+455), lightweight
Jasmine Jasudavicius (-258) vs. Mayra Bueno Silva (+210), flyweight
Bogdan Grad (-102) vs. Lucas Alexander (-118), featherweight
Hamdy Abdelwahab (-125) vs. Jamal Pogues (-105), heavyweight

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Published Feb 1, 2025

ZAIN BANDO

Zain Bando is a writer for MMA Knockout, part of the Sports Illustrated/Minute Media umbrella. He has covered combat sports since 2019 for notable outlets BJPenn.com and FanSided MMA. He also co-hosts a podcast called "The MMA Outsiders," part of the Empty The Bench Podcast Network, which airs Tuesday nights at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT. A Chicago suburban native, Bando has been enthralled with MMA since 2006 and has been fortunate to attend some of the most high-profile events in the sport's history, both as a fan and media member, including UFC 264, Bellator 297 and Kayla Harrison's PFL MMA debut. He is excited to take the next step in his combat sports writing journey and looks forward to continuing his following of the fight game for years to come. Bando can be reached via email at zainbando99@gmail.com or by social media @zainbando99