Shavkat Rakhmonov reacts to missing out on welterweight title fight against Belal Muhammad at UFC 315

02/20/2025 07:22 AM

Shavkat Rakhmonov will have to wait even longer for his UFC welterweight title shot following Dana White’s surprising announcement.

After an extremely impressive run in the UFC which saw Shavkat Rakhmonov maintain his 100% finish rate, he was finally awarded a welterweight title shot against Belal Muhammad at UFC 310.

Unfortunately for the Kazakh, Muhammad withdrew from the fight after suffering a broken toe and subsequent bone infection. Rakhmonov remained on the card subsequently picking up a decision win against Ian Machado Garry.

Following his win, Rakhmonov faced off with Muhammad after the champion entered the cage, suggesting that their fight would be rebooked, however, things have once again taken an unlikely turn.

Shavkat Rakhmonov reacts to Belal Muhammad vs Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315

This past Wednesday, UFC boss, Dana White surprisingly announced that Muhammad will take on Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315 on May 10, kicking off the defense of his 170lb title.

The news came as a huge shock as the consensus was that Rakhmonov would be given the title shot after missing out in December. And not only that but Jack Della Maddalena was scheduled to take on Leon Edwards at UFC London.

After Della Maddalena was upgraded to the title fight, Edwards will now take on Sean Brady in the UFC London main event on March 22.

Following White’s announcement, Rakhmonov shared his reaction on social media, revealing that he was in fact offered the title fight at UFC 315 but injury ruled him out this time.

Following Rakhmonov’s victory over Machado Garry at UFC 310, commentator, Daniel Cormier revealed that Rakhmonov fought with a torn MCL, with that likely being the cause of delay for his title shot.

When could Shavkat Rakhmonov end up fighting for the UFC welterweight title?

Unfortunately for the 30-year-old, he now has to play the waiting game and will be keeping an extremely close eye on the UFC 315 main event.

Della Maddalena has called to fight Rakhmonov on a number of occasions, as the two have been on similar trajectories towards the top of the 170lb division.

The Kazakh will be hoping that neither fighter picks up a serious injury on May 10 as that could cause further delay for his title shot but both fighters have recently suffered serious injuries.

Della Maddalena suffered a broken hand in his last fight against Gilbert Burns last March and that is why he hasn’t been active since then.

If the winner comes out relatively unscathed, Rakhmonov can expect to finally fight for the welterweight strap towards the end of the year, likely October onwards.