5 most explosive moments from UFC Vegas 32: Cory Sandhagen vs. T.J. Dillashaw

#4 Nassourdine Imavov’s striking proves to be too slick for Ian Heinisch

Nassourdine Imavov was impressive in his victory over Ian Heinisch at UFC Vegas 32

In a fascinating soundbite dropped by commentator Brendan Fitzgerald, it was revealed last night that Ian Heinisch had been training for his fight against Nassourdine Imavov with the last man to beat the Frenchman – Phil Hawes.

Unfortunately, that training couldn’t help ‘The Hurricane’ at all as he was thoroughly outclassed by Imavov, who produced a tremendous performance become the first man to stop Heinisch in the UFC.

Heinisch simply couldn’t get anything going in this fight. His vaunted wrestling never really allowed him to take Imavov down despite reaching the clinch on numerous occasions. Through the use of some impressive striking, ‘The Russian Sniper’ was always able to keep Heinisch at bay.

The end came in the second round. Imavov had the edge by that point, but when he landed a left hand that wobbled Heinisch and sent him stumbling backwards, it was clear that a finish was a possibility.

Imavov ended things beautifully, never getting too wild but instead landing more clean shots before dropping Heinisch with a knee and finishing him on the ground.

Pouring it on! 💥 🇫🇷 Nassourdine Imavov relentless to end it! #UFCVegas32[ LIVE on @ESPN & @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/BB5v6mn3fN

— UFC (@ufc) July 24, 2021

This explosive finish was apparently not enough to net him a $50k bonus award, but it was mightily impressive, and whoever faces him next in the UFC is clearly in for a tough match.

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#3 Mickey Gall produces the best performance of his UFC career to beat Jordan Williams

Mickey Gall's win over Jordan Williams was probably his best UFC performance to date

After garnering a ton of hype for his wins over CM Punk and Sage Northcutt, Mickey Gall had struggled for traction in the UFC over the past couple of years. In fact, the New Jersey native hadn’t won a fight since August 2019 until last night.

But his performance against Jordan Williams showed that the year off he’s taken has done him the world of good. Gall’s striking looked tuned up and more explosive than it’d been before, and he stunned Williams more than once with clean punches to the jaw.

However, what was impressive was the fact that Gall returned to his bread-and-butter – his slick ground game – to finish Williams with a nasty rear-naked choke midway through the first round.

RNC by @MickeyGall!! 🔥[ #UFCVegas32 | LIVE on ESPN & E+ ] pic.twitter.com/wzrN7dX8vu

— UFC (@ufc) July 24, 2021

Given the improvements in his striking, it would’ve been very easy for Gall to attempt to land a clean knockout of Williams, who was clearly out of his depth overall. But that would’ve been a risky gameplan and so it was much smarter for him to use his ground game for a victory that was no less explosive.

Based on this evidence, Gall may well be able to fulfill his potential in the UFC.