The last numbered tournament of this year, UFC 310, will take place on the night of December 8. There were many questions and speculation about who would lead the event, but over the weekend, Dana White provided the necessary answers. The main event of the night will be the welterweight title fight between Belal Muhammad and Shavkat Rakhmonov.
Belal only became champion in July, after pulling off an upset at the British tournament UFC 304. There, the American fighter of Palestinian origin simply outplayed Leon Edwards in front of his own audience and did something that few expected. And the UFC probably wasn’t happy that a non-media character with two finishes in the last five years won the belt.
There will be another title fight at UFC 310:
Title for a newcomer: a ridiculous circus? The UFC does not agree with this.
But there is another side of the coin. Muhammad is on an 11-fight unbeaten streak, and in the last few fights he really left no chance for Edwards, Gilbert Burns and Sean Brady, who are now in the top five and went into the fight with Belal undefeated. Yes, they were decision wins, but the champion still performed convincingly. And the title allowed Belal to improve even slightly his media presence. Can you ever imagine Conor McGregor challenging Muhammad to a fight?
Another advantage of Belal is that he wants to be active. I won the title three months ago and I am ready to defend it. What’s more, defending with a man who terrifies the entire division. And this is not because the UFC has put pressure on it. Muhammad himself declared his desire to fight with Shavkat: “I would prefer to fight with Rakhmonov. He has a different aura, he is an undefeated fighter. If I beat him, people will have nothing to look into. And if we talk about Kamaru, he is on a three-fight losing streak, he is old and his career is coming to an end.”
Belal Muhammad
Photo: Chris Unger/Getty Images
Rakhmonov made his UFC debut in October 2020, in the same tournament where Khabib Nurmagomedov ended his career. Shavkat immediately showed that he was coming to smear his opponents and stopped Alex Oliveira in the first round. If Belal’s finishes are a statistical error, then Rakhmonov’s are the opposite. Impressive statistics: 18 fights, 18 wins, 18 finishes.
This has already given Shavkat the love of fans. UFC commentator Laura Sanko is especially a fan of him. Rakhmonov’s fights are always spectacular and it is no coincidence that he is given a title opportunity. It is true that, for all the murderous potential of the Kazakh fighter, some small questions remain for the opposition. Of course, there are wins over Neil Magny, Stephen Thompson and Geoff Neal, but these are all fighters who are in the bottom 10. What will happen when the level of opposition grows?
Furthermore, Belal Muhammad is a very uncomfortable opponent in terms of style. Somewhere he will fight, somewhere he will try to stand up, there will be a clinch, he will be physically strong. Rakhmonov is the favorite, but in almost all recent fights Belal was not the favorite, but this does not prevent him from winning.
In any case, Rakhmonov’s title is a new round of history. Kazakhstan can get its first UFC champion and everyone knows very well how they support their fighters there. And if Shavkat can finish the game, his stock will skyrocket.
And, by the way, Rakhmonov’s victory is partly beneficial for Islam Makhachev. The Russians will not fight Belal, it has already been said. But Makhachev is unlikely to refuse a fight with Shavkat. So there will be additional intrigue on the title card.
