Undefeated UFC welterweight wants first fight against champ Belal Muhammad

Shavkat Rakhmonov does not have a UFC fight scheduled, but if the 18-0 Uzbekistan fighter’s wish comes true, the next time he steps into the Octagon he will face newly crowned UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad.

“UFC thinks I’m the No. 1 contender and I should be next because there’s no clear challenger anyway,” Rakhmonov recently told Submission Radio through an interpreter. “I’m 100 percent win-wise in the UFC, so I should be next. Everyone else is pretty close, but I think they need one or two wins to get that title shot, so I should be next.”

Rakhmonov made his UFC debut in 2020 with a submission win over Alex Oliveira. Since then, he has earned stoppage wins over Michel Prazeres, Carlston Harris, Neil Magny, Geoff Neal, and most recently two-time UFC welterweight challenger Stephen Thompson. Rakhmonov is the first fighter to ever defeat Thompson by submission.

Rakhmonov, who is currently ranked No. 3 in the UFC’s official welterweight rankings, said of Muhammad: “I think it will be a very hard-fought fight. I don’t think it will be an easy fight. It will be a tough fight and whoever imposes their own style on their opponent will win. Even though it won’t be easy, I believe I will win in the end.”

Muhammad (24-3-0-1) won the UFC welterweight crown in July with a unanimous decision victory over Leon Edwards. Muhammad is undefeated in 11 fights, with his last loss coming in 2019 when Geoff Neal defeated him by unanimous decision.

As for former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman’s request to face Muhammad, Rakhmonov denied Usman’s request.

“I don’t know what he (Usman) is thinking,” Rakhmonov said. “I think it’s kind of a shame to ask for a title shot after losing three fights in a row. I just can’t understand it. But yeah, it is what it is.”

Usman held the UFC 170-pound crown from March 2019 to August 2022. During that time, he defended the belt five times before losing the title to Edwards via a last-minute knockout. Since then, Usman is 0-2, losing to Edwards by decision in a rematch and losing to Khamzat Chimaev by decision at middleweight in October of last year. Usman is currently the second-best fighter in the welterweight division. Edwards is ranked No. 2.

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