Imavov Remains Betting Favorite Over Gastelum

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will kick off it 2023 fight campaign on Jan. 14 from inside the APEX facility in Las Vegas, Nevada, featuring a 185-pound headliner between Top 15 middleweights Nassourdine Imavov and Kelvin Gastelum.

Imavov jumped out to an early favorite, clocking in at -180 (5/9) according to BetOnline.ag. The No. 12-ranked Parisian is the winner of three straight and now stands at 4-1 under the UFC banner, improving to 12-3 overall with his unanimous decision victory over Joaquin Buckley at the UFC Paris event back in September.

Gastelum remains the betting underdog at +155 (31/20) and recently slipped to 16-8 (1 NC) after falling to Jared Cannonier in the UFC Vegas 34 headliner in August 2021. The former welterweight dropped five of his last six and is barely clinging to the Top 15 at No. 13. It’s not unreasonable to think a loss to Imavov sends him packing.

The UFC Vegas 67 fight card will also feature the 170-pound showdown pitting undefeated international prospect Shavkat Rakhmonov against rough-and-tumble welterweight veteran Geoff Neal. Elsewhere on the card, rising bantamweights Umar Nurmagomedov and Raoni Barcelos collide at 135 pounds.

For the latest UFC Vegas 67 fight card and ESPN+ lineup click here.