The 27-year-old has maintained his undefeated professional record since transitioning into the Octagon, securing submission victories over Brazilian veterans Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira and Michel Prazeres to push his record to 14-0 heading into his clash with Carlston Harris this weekend.
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Currently training at Sanford MMA in Deerfield Beach, Florida, the unbeaten “Nomad” is big for the welterweight division, standing six-foot-one and brandishing a 77-inch reach, which he uses well. The former M-1 Challenger welterweight titleholder has a complete arsenal of weapons at his disposal and has yet to go the distance in his professional career, which includes a catchweight victory over current UFC middleweight Junyong Park.
Saturday’s clash with Harris is another stern test for the promising Rakhmonov, as the 34-year-old from Guyana has also earned finishes in each of his first two trips into the Octagon, having submitted Christian Aguilera last May before earning a technical knockout victory over Impa Kasanganay in September. Currently riding a five-fight winning streak with nine victories in his last 10 appearances, “Moçambique” should serve as another good measuring stick for where Rakhmonov currently fits in the division.
When you see the collection of finishes the fighter from Kazakhstan accrued before arriving in the UFC and then recognize that next to no one has dominated and finished Oliveira and Prazeres with the ease and swiftness exhibited by Rakhmonov, it’s difficult not to get too excited about his upside. But those victories clearly show that he has the look of someone that is going to be a factor in the 170-pound ranks for the next several years, and if he maintains his current form through this weekend, it’s going to be even harder to temper the excitement surrounding this emerging star.
Miles Johns
Fortis MMA has been one of the top teams in the sport for the last couple of years, and Johns is one member of the crew to pay close attention to in 2022, as the 27-year-old bantamweight arrives in Las Vegas this week having earned back-to-back third-round stoppage victories to push his record to 12-1.
