Nothing will distract Shavkat Rakhmonov in his preparations for his fight against Stephen Thompson at UFC 296… not even his sister’s wedding.
The two fighters will fight in a welterweight bout on the main card of the event, and Rakhmonov already has everything planned out to claim his victory. Whether via submission or standing game, “Nomad” is certain that he will defeat the opponent, thanks to the preparations and sacrifices he’s been making. That includes missing some important family events.
Shavkat Rakhmonov’s sister and fellow fighter, Sora Rakhmonov, tied the knot, and videos of the event surfaced recently. Fans then quickly pointed out that Shavkat was not in the event, and the male fighter affirmed this. According to him, the focus now is his fight against Thompson, highlighting the importance of his job responsibilities and calling celebrations like that a simple distraction.
“Obviously I’m in the fight camp, and she got married at the time,” Shavkat told The MMA Hour. “Everything went well. I had to focus on the preparation,” Rakhmonov said, “For sure (it was hard to miss it). But the wedding celebration was good and I am very happy for my sister. She got married and I wish her only happiness.
“But I was getting ready for the fight, and the fight is my job. I have to focus on it. Maybe it’s even better that I was here and I wasn’t distracted by the celebrations and stuff like this,” Rakhmonov continued. “I just stayed focused on my fight.”
Nomad is eyeing the title shot, especially after securing his win at UFC 296. Nonetheless, the Kazakh male fighter knows that there are several fellows ahead of him, including No. 2-ranked Belal Muhammad, who owns a current 10-fight winning streak. The 29-year-old believes “Belal Muhammad also deserves the title shot,” but is “ready” in case the UFC gives him a chance to face the division champ in the future.
