If the competitors have anything to say about it, Stephen Thompson and Shavkat Rakhmonov’s welterweight battle at UFC 296 will take place.
The unbeaten Rakhmonov will be Thompson’s opponent at the pay-per-view fight on December 16 at Las Vegas’s T-Mobile Arena, the UFC announced on Friday.
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On Wednesday, 20 September 2023 UFC CEO Dana White made it official that Covington (17-3) would get his third shot at the undisputed Welterweight title when he competes against the current champion, Leon Edwards, in the pay-per-view (PPV) main event of UFC 296 on December 26, 2023. Covington’s first fight since defeating Jorge Masvidal by unanimous decision in March 2022 will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
When UFC offered Stephen Thomson the opportunity to face Shavkat Rakhmonov, he didn’t delay to undertaking the opportunity, also the fighter made his decision official via a post on X, as he wrote “ UFC offered and I’ve accepted, @Rakhmonov1994 let’s close out the year strong. Dec 16 can’t wait”
Shavkat too accepted the offer, as he responded to the post with “Let’s Go”
Thompson has been pitched the Khazak fighter in the past as a potential opponent, but the bout has not yet taken place.
Thompson claimed in August 2022 that he was uninterested in the contest because he believed Rakhmonov would merely grapple him. Following Rakhmonov’s victory over Geoff Neal by submission at UFC 285, the two engaged in a testy Twitter conversation regarding a potential showdown.
At UFC Orlando in December of last year, Thompson’s most recent fight resulted in a TKO victory over Kevin Holland in the fourth round. This ended a two-fight losing streak for the two-time title challenger against Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad, putting him back in the victory column.
Thompson is ranked eighth, while Rakhmonov is fourth in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings after going 5-0 in the UFC.
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