The noted Kazakh UFC welterweight Shavkat Rakhmonov defended both his undefeated pro-MMA streak and his 100% finish rate with his UFC 296 victory over Stephen Thompson. His incredible in-octagon prowess is why Rakhmonov is taking the UFC community by storm currently. A recent incident revealed that a large chunk of fans will back him even if he fights the former UFC welterweight king, Kamaru Usman.
Rakhmonov gave a nod to a question about whether he could beat Kamaru Usman in one of his post-UFC 285 interviews. However, in Usman’s post-UFC 290 interview, ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ also mentioned that he was open to a fight against ‘Nomad’, but only if it was for the title. Well, the UFC welterweight gold is in Leon Edwards’ possession currently. But Usman’s recent Instagram posts reveal that the fans can’t wait to watch him fight Rakhmonov.
The noted combat sports covering Instagram account ‘CombaTalk’ shared one such post from Usman on their own account. It showcased how ‘Nomad’ had a huge fanbase who were backing him to get the better of Usman. Their caption read:
“Shavkat’s support is unreal”
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But Rakhmonov’s post-UFC 296 interview revealed that he wanted to fight for the title next. However, such posts imply that a large chunk of his fanbase wants to watch him fight Usman next. It’s uncertain what the future holds for the Kazakh.
Is Shavkat Rakhmonov the next one in line to get a shot at UFC welterweight gold?
Well, ramping up six consecutive victories in the UFC right from debut is no easy task. Moreover, Rakhmonov has also gained victories against a few renowned UFC welterweights, including Geoff Neal and ‘Wonderboy’. He has finished off all of his rivals in the process as well. Hence, it won’t be shocking if Dana White decides to grant the next UFC welterweight title shot to ‘Nomad’. However, current stats say that there’s another one who deserves the next title shot even more.
It’s none other than the currently #1 ranked UFC welterweight, Belal Muhammad. However, a large chunk of the UFC fanbase seems to be uninterested in watching Belal fight for the title. ‘Remember The Name’ is on an awesome 10-fight winning streak. But the fan accusations of him being “boring” just don’t seem to go away. Whereas, Rakhmonov’s fans are super-excited for his next bout. They are an enormous factor in why the UFC authorities might select Rakhmonov for the next title shot over Belal.
