“Logically, if the fight is not for the title, it makes sense to fight Colby Covington – both for the UFC and for us,” Abdrakhmanov said. “But Colby is already challenging Vanderboegh to a fight, meaning he will do everything to avoid a fight with Shavkat.”
According to Abdrakhmanov, the most likely candidate to fight “Nomad” looks to be Australian Jack Della Maddalena, who will face the Kazakh fighter’s teammate, Gilbert Burns, on March 9 at UFC 299 in Miami.
“In March, Gilbert Burns and Jack Della Maddalena will fight, and if Della Maddalena wins, he can take the fourth ranking, be above Shavkat. And might then have to fight Jack Della Maddalena. Shawkat, in fact, has wanted to fight him for a long time. So if Della Maddalena beats Burns brightly, that’s also a potential opponent who certainly won’t turn down a fight with Shawkat”
On Dec. 16 at UFC 296 in Las Vegas, undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov earned his sixth early victory under the UFC banner by finishing Stephen Thompson with a second-round rear-naked choke, while Leon Edwards successfully defended his championship belt in the event’s main event, winning a five-round unanimous decision over Colby Covington.