UFC middleweight contender Nassourdine Imavov recently reacted to Reinier de Ridder’s loss to Brendan Allen at UFC Vancouver, where De Ridder was unable to continue fighting beyond the fourth round.
Allen and De Ridder faced off in a pivotal middleweight main event at Rogers Arena last weekend. After four intense rounds, De Ridder’s corner threw in the towel before the fifth round began, signaling his withdrawal from the fight.
Many fans were surprised by De Ridder’s corner decision to stop the fight, especially given expectations that the Dutchman would defeat Allen, who accepted the bout on short notice.
In a recent interview with MMA Junkie, Imavov shared his thoughts on the outcome. He stated,
“About RDR against Allen, I knew Allen would win. He doesn’t have the level that people think he has, and that’s what Allen showed. I knew he was overrated because of his fighting style, all the holes he has in his game. I faced Allen before, so I knew from my perspective, Allen would be better than him.”
Imavov went on to comment on the decision to quit at such a high level:
“As an elite fighter, you can’t give up. That’s your job, that’s what you do for a living. You are at the highest level in the world, and you’re showing it to people. So, you can’t give up. It’s like in life — at the end of the day. But I heard it was his corner that threw in the towel, so I don’t know what happened clearly, but like I said, for me, you can’t give up at the highest level.”
Brendan Allen also expressed his feelings about the situation, revealing that he would rather be knocked out than quit. In an interview with MMA Fighting, Allen said:
“I’d rather get knocked out [or] something. I’m not going to quit on the stool. I can’t quit on my team like that. We work so hard. I think my dad would disown me, too, if I did that, to be honest. He’s different. I don’t know, I can’t do that. I don’t want my kids to see that. We follow through no matter what.”
[H/t: MMA Fighting]
—
**About the Author**
Nishant Zende brings extensive knowledge and experience to his MMA reporting for Sportskeeda. With 1.5 years at the organization and prior experience in sports journalism, Nishant has established himself as a prolific MMA writer.
Holding a Bachelor’s degree, Nishant admires UFC legend Georges St-Pierre for his dominance and exemplary conduct both inside and outside the cage. The monumental UFC 229 event, headlined by Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Conor McGregor, ignited Nishant’s passion for MMA.
With over 1,700 published articles and 4.4 million reads in less than two years, Nishant believes MMA is poised to surpass boxing as the world’s top combat sport. Outside MMA, his interests include philosophy, music exploration, and wildlife photography.
—
**Recommended Video:**
MMA vs. Boxing: The Ultimate Showdown!
https://www.sportskeeda.com/mma/news-you-give-up-top-ufc-middleweight-reacts-reinier-de-ridder-s-corner-throwing-towel-brendan-allen-ufc-vancouver
