Shavkat Rakhmonov will still be fighting at UFC 310, however, an interim title won’t be on the line.
The undefeated welterweight contender is set to face Ian Machado Garry in a five-round non-title bout as the co-main event of the Dec. 10 card, UFC CEO Dana White announced Friday. With Rakhmonov now stepping down to the co-headliner, the flyweight title bout between UFC champion Alexandre Pantoja and former RIZIN champion Kai Asakura has been elevated to headline UFC’s final pay-per-view of 2024.
Garry was expected to face Joaquin Buckley in the main event of UFC Tampa on Dec. 14. As a result of the switch, three-time welterweight title challenger Colby Covington is now slated to fight Buckley in a five-round main event.
Rakhmonov expressed displeasure with his fellow welterweights following the announcement.
“I’m very disappointed in our division,” he wrote on social media. “Belal (Muhammad), Leon (Edwards), Kamaru (Usman), Jack (Della Maddalena), Sean (Brady) — you’ve all let fans down. The only one who backed up his words is Ian, and I respect that. But make no mistake, [Garry] — I’m coming for your 0 and will fight for the belt after.”
Rakhmonov (18-0) was initially set to challenge UFC champion Belal Muhammad for the welterweight title in UFC 310’s main event, however the event was thrown into disarray following Muhammad’s withdrawal due to a bone infection in his foot. Rakhmonov, 30, carries a perfect 100% finishing rate in his MMA career and has run roughshod over his first six UFC opponents, stopping the likes of Stephen Thompson, Geoff Neal and Neil Magny. He is widely considered to be a future champion of the division.
Garry (15-0) has also been perfect through eight UFC appearances, although he has just three finishes to his name under the promotional banner. The Irishman’s most notable victories came in his past two bouts, a split decision over Geoff Neal followed by a unanimous decision over Michael Page.
UFC 310 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
UFC 310 updated fight card
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Flyweight title bout: Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Asakura
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Shavkat Rakhmonov vs. Ian Machado Garry
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Nick Diaz vs. Vicente Luque
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Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov
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Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling
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Dominick Reyes vs. Anthony Smith
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Doo Ho Choi vs. Nate Landwehr
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Clay Guida vs. Chase Hooper
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Michael Chiesa vs. Max Griffin
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Randy Brown vs. Bryan Battle
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Cody Durden vs. Joshua Van
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Martin Buday vs. Rizvan Kuniev
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Lukasz Brzeski vs. Tallison Teixeira
