A middleweight fight between Jared Cannonier and Nassourdine Imavov has been announced as the main event for UFC On ESPN 57 on June 8th in Louisville, Kentucky.
The 40-year-old Cannonier comes into the fight off of two big wins since losing to Israel Adesanya in his title challenge back in the summer of 2022.
His current run started with a split-decision win over Sean Strickland in a short-notice fight at 205lbs in December of 2022, followed by a unanimous decision victory over another leading contender, Marvin Vettori in June of last year back at middleweight, leaving him ranked No.4 at 185lbs ahead of his next bout.
The 29-year-old Imavov headed into 2023 on a three-fight winning streak, but then lost to Sean Strickland that January, followed by an unfortunate ending to his next fight with Chris Curtis when an accidental clash of heads in the second round leading to a no-contest ruling.
Imavov has since bounced back by beating Roman Dolidze via majority decision in February of this year, leaving him ranked No.8 in the division.
Cannonier vs. Imavov will front a UFC ON ESPN 57 event that will also include the likes of Dominick Reyes vs. Dustin Jacoby, Thiago Moises vs. Ludovit Klein and Andrea Lee vs. Montana De La Rosa.
