Shavkat Rakhmonov doubts Ian Machado Garry’s plan to fight Khamzat Chimaev will progress past their upcoming UFC 310 bout, as Rakhmonov aims to secure a title shot by defeating Garry in their pivotal welterweight clash.
Shavkat Rakhmonov thinks Ian Machado Garry’s ambitious three-step plan to face Khamzat Chimaev at middleweight might not even reach step two. Yeah, he’s that skeptical.
This Saturday, Rakhmonov and Garry are set to clash in a five-round co-main event at UFC 310. It’s a crucial welterweight battle with a potential title shot against Belal Muhammad on the line. Stakes? High.
Garry recently shared his roadmap on The Ariel Helwani Show: first beat Rakhmonov, then snag the welterweight title, and finally, move up to take on Chimaev. But Rakhmonov? He thinks Garry’s getting ahead of himself.
"Yeah, I think he’s going to stumble in the first step," Rakhmonov told MMA Fighting. Ouch.
Originally, Rakhmonov was slated to challenge Muhammad in the main event, but plans changed when Muhammad had to bow out due to a nasty bone infection. Instead of waiting for a championship bout, Rakhmonov chose to risk his title shot now—partly for himself and partly to hush critics questioning his right to fight for the belt.
"The main reason is because I didn’t fight for almost a year," he explained. "We don’t know how long Belal will take to recover, so I wanted to stay active and agreed to fight Garry."
He also wants to prove something. "For sure [I wanted to prove I earned the title shot]. Some people doubt me, but I don’t doubt myself," Rakhmonov said confidently. "After the fight with Ian Garry, they’ll probably change their mind."
For Garry, this is his biggest fight yet. He’s aiming for a perfect 3-0 in 2024 against ranked opponents. This year, he edged out close decisions over Geoff Neal and Michael Page.
Rakhmonov paid attention during those bouts. "Yeah, you know, it was two competitive fights, pretty close," he noted. "I thought Ian won, [but] it could have gone either way." That’s UFC for you—sometimes unpredictable.
Right now, there’s no word on when Muhammad will return for his first title defense since beating Leon Edwards at UFC 304. But Rakhmonov’s focus is squarely on Garry this Saturday. He’s confident that no matter what happens, he’ll get his shot at UFC gold in 2025.
“All of that will end with my hand being raised with my victory,” Rakhmonov declared. And there you have it—bold words from a man ready for battle.