Nassourdine Imavov bails on UFC 319 backup duties: ‘Conditions changed’

The UFC 319 main event no longer has a backup fighter, as Nassourdine Imavov has shrugged off his commitment to the role.

UFC 319 is set for August 16 in Chicago, Illinois. The card will be headlined by a middleweight title fight, as champion Dricus Du Plessis of South Africa looks to defend his belt against undefeated Chechen juggernaut Khamzat Chimaev. It’s easily one of the biggest fights of the year, and everyone is hoping it goes down as planned. However, accidents do happen. Chimaev also unfortunately has a track record of withdrawing from fights at the last minute.

The risk of the UFC 319 main event falling through prompted the company to call upon No. 1-ranked Frenchman Nassourdine Imavov to serve as the backup fighter for the event. In other words, he committed to stepping in if Du Plessis or Chimaev can’t make it to the cage.

Nassourdine Imavov shrugs of UFC 319 backup role

From the sounds of it, he is no longer interested. On Tuesday, Imavov took to social media to declare he’s bailing on his duties. He claimed “conditions changed,” but gave no further explanation. Instead, he set his fights on fellow contender Caio Borralho of Brazil.

No backup anymore. Conditions changed. You wanted to talk son, I’m here, I’m gonna break you @BorralhoCaio 🤓 ⏳

— Imavov Nassourdine (@imavov1) June 17, 2025

“No backup anymore,” Imavov wrote. “Conditions changed.

“You wanted to talk son, I’m here,” he added, tagging Borralho. “I’m gonna break you.”

Nassourdine Imavov is on one of the best runs in the middleweight division right now. In his last fight, he picked up the biggest win of his career to date, knocking out former champion Israel Adesanya. Had Chimaev not stunned fans with a submission of Robert Whittaker last week, Imavov may well have gotten the shot at Du Plessis at UFC 319. If he were to beat Borralho, he’d be undeniable for a crack at the winner of the card’s main event.