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Rakhmonov had essentially earned a welterweight title shot with a victory over Ian Garry last year. However, the 170-pound title was up for grabs at UFC 315 this past May, when Rakhmonov couldn’t accept the fight due to an undisclosed injury. Jack Della Maddalena went on to dethrone Belal Muhammad in an upset at UFC 315. With his friend Muhammad dethroned, former lightweight champ Islam Makhachev moved up to welterweight. Dana White has since promised Makhachev the next title shot at 170 pounds against Maddalena, which means Rakhmonov has to wait for his gold bid.
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However, Rakhmonov would rather wait for his shot than waste time preparing for any “intermediate” fights.
Rakhmonov Willing to Sit Out Until Next Year
“The situation is difficult, I’m waiting to see who will fight for the title,” he told Ulysmedia Kazakhstan. Perhaps we’ll go straight to the title fight, even next year… I’m waiting. I don’t want to waste my energy on intermediate fights.”
Rakhmonov also refuted rumors of a fight against former champ Muhammad in October. Rakhmonov’s victory over Garry was the first time the undefeated Kazakh saw the judges’ scorecards in 19 pro wins. “Nomad” has seven UFC victories against battle-tested opponents like Stephen Thompson, Neil Magny and Geoff Neal.
Shavkat Rakhmonov wants to fight for the title and isn’t interested in any ‘intermediate fights’
“The situation is difficult, I’m waiting to see who will fight for the title. Perhaps we’ll go straight to the title fight, even next year…
I’m waiting. I don’t want to waste my… pic.twitter.com/Z1O4GRdhe0
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) July 8, 2025
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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