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Nassourdine Imavov recently explained why a title fight against Sean Strickland will be a “very personal” affair for him.<\/p>\n
Strickland went up against Khamzat Chimaev<\/a> in a middleweight title fight in the main event of UFC 328 in May. While many expected Chimaev’s grappling skills to be too much for Strickland to handle, the American beat the Chechen-born fighter via split decision to reclaim the 185-pound throne.<\/p>\n Imavov is coming off a unanimous decision win over Caio Borralho at UFC Paris last September and is now on an impressive five-fight win streak. Given his resume, he’s looking forward to a title shot and believes a fight against Strickland is on the cards. In an interview with Jaiden Cable, he said:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/template><\/p>\n “Of course, my next fight is [for] the belt. Before the fight with Strickland and Khamzat, I wanted to fight Dricus [Du Plessis] to stay active, and the UFC told me I could fight only for the belt. After Khamzat vs. Strickland, I’m 100% fighting for the belt.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings<\/a> at Sportskeeda and more<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Referencing Strickland’s outspoken behavior, he added:<\/p>\n “I do not like him. He’s not a good person. He talks sh*t every day. We already fought before, and he insulted me several times. Even during his fight week with Khamzat, he called me a t*rrorist. It’s such bullsh*t that it’s hard not to want to rip his head off. It’s very personal. I think he’s the only fighter in the UFC where it’s so personal.” [H\/t: MMA Junkie<\/a>]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n After his title loss, Khamzat Chimaev made it clear that he’s looking for a rematch against Sean Strickland<\/a>. However, it appears Dricus du Plessis isn’t entertaining that idea at all.<\/p>\n The South African fighter went up against Strickland twice and got his hand raised on both occasions. Having beaten Kamaru Usman at UFC Oklahoma City last weekend, du Plessis believes he should be the frontrunner<\/a> for the title shot. In an interview with Submission Radio<\/em>, he said:<\/p>\n “The Khamzat rematch is ridiculous. It doesn’t make any sense. If they do it, it is what it is. It will be crazy, but let them do what they need to do. I’ll just fight my way back. After my performance, let my performance speak. That’s the thing… Right now, I don’t have anything to say. I can’t really say anything because I got beaten in my last fight. You can’t really say too much, but the fight’s five days away. I’ll do my talking there, and I’ll prove once again why I am the best in the world.”<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\nDricus du Plessis slams potential Sean Strickland vs. Khamzat Chimaev rematch idea<\/h2>\n