SUMMARY
- Shavkat Rakhmonov made his debut against Alex Oliveira at UFC 254 via first-round submission.
- Shavkat Rakhmonov's trainer, took to the internet to share the reason behind their grappling tactic for the fight.
Shavkat Rakhmonov is a mixed martial artist from Kazakhstan who made his debut with the UFC in 2020. Ever since signing with the organization, the 29-year-old has been a force to be reckoned with. Since winning his debut against Alex Oliveira at UFC 254 via first-round submission, he has been dominating all his opponents. with an undefeated 18-0 professional MMA record.
The Kazakh fighter is currently on a six-fight win streak and ranked No. 3 in the UFC Welterweight Division. A possible future title contender, he has been able to finish all his opponents faced. His last bout was against UFC Fighter Stephen Thompson at UFC 296; he won via submission and became the first fighter to submit the veteran.
Henri Hooft says that Shavkat suffered his ankle injury 25 days before the fight & is why they decided to go grappling heavy vs Wonderboy pic.twitter.com/Kar4SfvVJh
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) December 18, 2023
Stephen is a well-known kickboxer and is considered one of the best strikers in the game. Many fans were excited to see the exchange between the two fighters, although the fight turned out to be more of a grappling fest. Shavkat dominated ‘Wonderboy‘ with his wrestling and grappling skills, for which Thompson didn’t have any answers.
Shavkat’s trainer and former kickboxer, Henri Hooft, took to the internet to share the reason behind their grappling tactic for the fight. Henri shared that the Welterweight had suffered from an ankle injury 25 days before the UFC 296 event and therefore was relying more on his grappling and ground game. Even with a compromised ankle, he was able to put on an impressive finish.
Shavkat Rakhmonov calls out for title fight next
With one of the most exciting runs in the MMA world, fans are eager to see Shavkat Rakhmonov back in action. Although speculations are made as to who Shavkat would face next, the fighter shared that he believes he is ready for his title shot. With Colby Covington out of the title picture for a while after his third title fight loss, the next two possible contenders would be Belal Muhammad and ‘Nomad‘.
Belal Muhammad is on a nine-fight win streak, but seven of his wins have been by decision. Although he gets the job done, he isn’t able to build a fan base and is often criticized for his slow and monotonous bouts. Shavkat, on the contrary, has been one of the most promising young prospects for the UFC, with a significant following across different countries.
This could weigh in for the ‘Nomad’, as the fans have often seen in past UFC title fights. The only other outcome could be the two fighters squaring up against each other for the title shot. The current Welterweight Champion Leon Edwards has also just come off his second title defense at UFC 296 and expressed his desire to go for double champ status through Light Heavyweight.