Shavkat Rakhmonov News

Cole Shelton - September 27, 2023

Stephen Thompson surprised many when he revealed on social media that he had accepted a fight against Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 296. Thompson was offered Rakhmonov last year and told BJPENN.com in August 2022, that he turned it down because he wasn’t interested in the matchup. Part of the reason why ‘Wonderboy’ turned the fight down was because he wanted to face another striker, as he was coming off back-to-back losses to Belal Muhammad and Gilbert Burns.

Josh Evanoff - September 22, 2023

UFC welterweight contenders Stephen Thompson and Shavkat Rakhmonov will clash in December. ‘Wonderboy’ seemingly targeted Kamaru Usman after his canceled bout with Michel Pereira earlier this summer. At the time, Stephen Thompson stated that he was uninterested in facing up-and-comers such as Shavkat Rakhmonov. Instead, he would prefer to face former champions such as ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’. The bout was targeted for December after the former titleholder showed interest.

Chris Taylor - August 6, 2023

Dustin Poirier is considering a move up to welterweight which has already piqued the interest of an undefeated contender. Poirier (29-8 MMA) had his lightweight title aspirations halted earlier this month at UFC 291 when he suffered a knockout loss to Justin Gaethje in a fight for the promotion’s BMF title. That frustrating setback served as Dustin’s second in his past three contests, as he was previously submitted by Charles Oliveira in a fight for the lightweight championship at UFC 269.

Susan Cox - August 1, 2023

Shavkat Rakhmonov is reacting after Kevin Gastelum announced that their fight is postponed due to injury. It was to be Shavkat Rakhmonov (17-0 MMA) vs Kevin Gastelum (18-8 MMA) on Saturday, September 16th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Cole Shelton - June 20, 2023

Kelvin Gastelum is ready to fight Shavkat Rakhmonov next time out. After Gastelum announced he would be making the move to welterweight, Rakhmonov quickly called him out on social media. Although Gastelum did not immediately respond as he was on vacation, the TUF 17 winner has said he wants that fight and hopes it can happen on the Mexican Independence card on September 16.

Harry Kettle - May 30, 2023

MMA analyst Chael Sonnen has questioned Shavkat Rakhmonov for his recent callout of returning welterweight Kelvin Gastelum. In his return to action last month, Kelvin Gastelum got back to winning ways with a solid victory over Chris Curtis. Ever since then, many have wondered what’s next for him – with Gastelum himself being open to the idea of a move back to welterweight.

Josh Evanoff - May 23, 2023

UFC welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov would love to welcome Kelvin Gastelum back to the division. The former middleweight title challenger is fresh off his return last month at UFC 287. In that outing, Gastelum earned a badly needed unanimous decision victory over Chris Curtis. For their performances, the two received the ‘Performance of the Night’ award. Weeks following the victory, he announced his plans to drop back down to the welterweight division.

Harry Kettle - April 11, 2023

UFC star Khamzat Chimaev has seemingly squashed any potential beef with fellow fighter Shavkat Rakhmonov. Over the course of the last few years, there’s been a lot of talk surrounding Khamzat Chimaev and Shavkat Rakhmonov. Both men are undefeated, and both men have looked incredibly dominant during their time in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Harry Kettle - March 6, 2023

UFC president Dana White has shown interest in booking Shavkat Rakhmonov to take on Colby Covington in his next fight. Last Saturday night, Shavkat Rakhmonov submitted Geoff Neal in what proved to be a sensational encounter at UFC 285. He had to overcome some real adversity, which included getting rocked once or twice, but he persevered and secured the finish late in the bout.

Fernando Quiles - March 5, 2023

Shavkat Rakhmonov is riding high following a third-round submission finish over Geoff Neal, and he’s eyeing gold at welterweight. Rakhmonov and Neal shared the Octagon on the main card of UFC 285 this past Saturday night. In the end, Rakhmonov secured a rear-naked choke and that was all she wrote.

Chris Taylor - March 4, 2023

Tonight’s UFC 285 main card lineup featured a key welterweight contest between Shavkat Rakhmonov and Geoff Neal. Neal (15-5 MMA) had entered the bout sporting a two-fight winning streak, his most recent being an impressive knockout victory over Vicente Luque. ‘Handz of Steel’ had gone 7-2 overall in his UFC career ahead of tonight’s affair.

Chris Taylor - March 4, 2023

Tonight’s UFC 285 main card lineup features a key welterweight contest between Shavkat Rakhmonov and Geoff Neal. Neal (15-4 MMA) will enter the bout on a two-fight winning streak, his most recent being a knockout victory over Vicente Luque. ‘Handz of Steel’ has gone 7-2 since joining the UFC ranks back in February of 2018.

Susan Cox - January 4, 2023

Shavkat Rakhmonov vs Geoff Neal has been rebooked for UFC 285 in March. Rakhmonov (16-0 MMA) vs Neal (15-4 MMA) was originally scheduled to take place on Saturday, January 14th of this year but was scratched due to ‘Handz of Steel‘ suffering an undisclosed injury.

Josh Evanoff - December 30, 2022

Shavkat Rakhmonov wants to know where he fits into the welterweight division. ‘Nomad’ has been out of action since his clash with Neil Magny in June. The bout was the biggest test of the undefeated fighter’s career thus far, but he was seemingly unfazed. Rakhmonov dominated the veteran en route to a second-round submission win.

Cole Shelton - December 29, 2022

Geoff Neal and Shavkat Rakhmonov will no longer be fighting at UFC Vegas 67 on January 14. Neal and Rakhmonov were set to be the co-main event of the card in a very intriguing welterweight scrap as ‘Nomad’ was looking to remain undefeated. However, just two weeks before the fight, it was reported that Neal suffered an injury and was forced out of the contest.

Harry Kettle - October 5, 2022

Jorge Masvidal has fallen out of the UFC’s welterweight top 10 rankings, being replaced by Shavkat Rakhmonov. Over the course of the last few years, Jorge Masvidal hasn’t quite enjoyed the success he did upon breaking out into the mainstream in 2019. He lost consecutive title bouts to Kamaru Usman and, most recently, was handily beaten by rival Colby Covington in what proved to be a fairly one-sided affair.

Harry Kettle - June 27, 2022

Neil Magny has provided fans with a positive reaction to his submission loss at the hands of Shavkat Rakhmonov. Heading into Saturday night’s co-main event at the UFC Apex, Neil Magny seemed to be feeling pretty confident about his chances against rising prospect Shavkat Rakhmonov. From his 7-2 record to his storied history as a UFC fighter, it’s no surprise that Magny backed himself – but in the end, Shavkat just proved to be too much for the 34-year-old.

Chris Taylor - June 25, 2022

Tonight’s UFC Vegas 57 event was co-headlined by a key welterweight bout featuring Neil Magny taking on Shavkat Rakhmonov. Magny (26-9 MMA) had entered the contest on a two-fight winning streak, his most recent being a split decision win over Max Griffin. The welterweight veteran had gone 5-1 over his past six Octagon appearances overall.