Shavkat Rakhmonov Bio, Age, Height, Parents, Wife, Children, Net Worth

Shavkat Rakhmonov Bio, Age, Height, Parents, Wife, Children, Net Worth – Shavkat Bakhtibaevich Rakhmonov is a Kazakh mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Welterweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

Born on October 23, 1994, Rakhmonov began his professional career in October 2014 with a first-round triangle choke victory against Adam Tsurov at M-1 Challenge 52.

Shavkat Rakhmonov Biography

As an amateur, Rakhmonov won the WMMAA World and Asian Championships titles. In 2013, he became the world champion in amateur MMA for the WMMAA. In 2014, he became the WMMAA’s Asian MMA champion and came in second in the WMMAA’s World Championship that year and the following year, both times losing to Gadzhimurad Khiramagomedov.

Rakhmonov alternated between fighting under the M-1 banner and in his home country’s own MMA organization, the Kazakhstan Mixed Martial Arts Federation (KZMMAF). He earned his first shot at a title as a professional against Faridun Odilov for the KZMMAF welterweight belt and won the title by third-round TKO. He defended his belt in his next fight at Battle of Nomads 11 against Rinat Sayakbaev in December 2018.

Rakhmonov returned to M-1 at the start of the new year, facing Daniil Prikaza at M-1 Challenge 101 for the vacant M-1 Welterweight Championship. He secured his second belt with a second-round TKO stoppage. In his last appearance on the regional scene, he defended his M-1 welterweight title with a first-round stoppage of Tiago Varejão at M-1 Challenge 102.

Rakhmonov was the first Kazakh fighter to sign a contract with the UFC. He was scheduled to face Bartosz Fabiński on March 21, 2020, at UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs. Edwards, but the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He was expected to face Ramazan Emeev on July 26, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Whittaker vs. Till, but had to pull out due to injury and was replaced by Niklas Stolze.

Rakhmonov faced Alex Oliveira on October 24, 2020, at UFC 254, after originally being scheduled to fight Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos, who had to pull out due to injury. Oliveira weighed in at 173 pounds, two pounds over the welterweight non-title fight limit, and the bout proceeded at catchweight. Rakhmonov won the fight via guillotine choke submission in the first round.

He faced Michel Prazeres at UFC Fight Night: Gane vs. Volkov on June 26, 2021, and won the bout via rear-naked choke submission in the second round. Rakhmonov then faced Carlston Harris on February 5, 2022, at UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs. Strickland, and won the fight via knockout in round one, earning him the Performance of the Night award.

As the first bout of his new five-fight contract, Rakhmonov faced Neil Magny on June 25, 2022, at UFC on ESPN 38. He won the fight via a guillotine choke submission in the second round, earning him the Performance of the Night bonus award.

Rakhmonov was scheduled to face Geoff Neal on January 14, 2023, at UFC Fight Night: Gastelum vs. Imavov, but Neal pulled out due to an undisclosed injury.

The fight got rescheduled to take place at UFC 285 on March 4, 2023. On the day prior to the fight, at the official weigh-ins, Neal stepped on the scale and was found to be weighing 175 pounds, which is 4 pounds over the welterweight limit for non-title fights. Therefore, the bout was altered to a catchweight fight, allowing the fight to still take place, albeit at a different weight class. Additionally, Neal was fined 30% of his fight purse, which is the amount of money that a fighter receives for participating in the fight, and this fine was awarded to Rakhmonov.

Despite the weight discrepancy, the fight between Neal and Rakhmonov proceeded as planned, and in the end, Rakhmonov emerged victorious. He secured a rear-naked choke submission against Neal in the third round, leading to his triumph. This victory proved to be a significant achievement for Rakhmonov, as he received the coveted Fight of the Night award for his impressive performance.