Who is Shavkat Rakhmonov? What is his record in MMA

Shavkat Rakhmonov is widely regarded as one of the top prospects in the UFC and the sport of MMA today. The 28-year-old MMA stalwart has been touted by many as a future UFC welterweight champion.

Rakhmonov boasts an undefeated professional MMA record of 17 victories (8 via KO/TKO, 9 via submission) and no defeats, finishing every opponent he's fought. The Kazakh fighter, who was born in Uzbekistan, is currently considered to be one of the most dangerous grapplers on the UFC roster, particularly in the UFC's 170-pound weight class.

Shavkat Rakhmonov made his MMA debut in October 2014 and amassed a 12-0 record before joining the UFC in October 2020. His UFC record stands at 5-0. The grappling savant holds wins over notable UFC welterweights such as Neil Magny and Geoff Neal.

Rakhmonov's most recent fight witnessed him defeat Geoff Neal via third-round submission in a 175-pound catchweight bout at UFC 285 earlier this month. The fight against Neal ended up being an outstanding showcase of Rakhmonov's MMA skills, both in the grappling realm and in the striking aspect.

Rakhmonov was initially unable to make the fight a grappling-heavy affair like he generally does, as Neal craftily defended his takedown attempts. That said, the young fighter didn't hesitate to strike with Neal, who's known to be a dangerous knockout artist.

Showcasing an iron chin and valiantly absorbing Neal's strikes, Rakhmonov landed several strikes of his own to hurt 'Handz of Steel' on the feet. This was followed by a rear-naked choke submission hold that 'Nomad' utilized to submit Neal in their showdown's third and final round.

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Stephen Thompson on his back and forth with Shavkat Rakhmonov after UFC 285

Following his victory at UFC 285, Shavkat Rakhmonov expressed interest in fighting a couple of top-tier welterweights, namely Colby Covington and Stephen Thompson. While Rakhmonov's next opponent hasn't been officially announced yet, his relentless call-outs of Thompson elicited a response from the welterweight striking wizard.

Stephen Thompson previously turned down Shavkat Rakhmonov's challenge. 'Wonderboy' suggested that he aims to put on entertaining striking matchups against fellow strikers rather than face grapplers like 'Nomad.' Furthermore, speaking to Submission Radio, Thompson recently brought up Rakhmonov's post-UFC 285 tweet, wherein the latter called him out again.

'Wonderboy' insinuated that Rakhmonov is purportedly not fluent in English and isn't the one writing his tweets, adding that it's likely the Kazakh fighter's manager who's doing it on his behalf. He added that Rakhmonov tweeted about the striking skills he displayed against Neal. On that note, Stephen Thompson emphasized that 'Nomad' still won the fight via submission courtesy of his grappling and not his striking:

"I’m just like, you did try to take him down like, just because Geoff Neal defended, you’re 0 and 4 in takedowns doesn’t mean you’re not a grappler. And how did you finish the fight? Did you finish standing or striking? No! You finished with a submission.”

Watch Thompson address Rakhmonov's fight and more at 12:31 in the video below: