Shavkat Rakhmonov showed progress against Ian Garry despite questions remaining

A detailed review of Shavkat Rakhmonov's performance against Ian Garry highlighted several improvements and remaining concerns. Rakhmonov demonstrated progress at mid-range compared to his fight with Neil Magny, landing strong single strikes including jabs, overhand rights, left hooks, and spinning backfists. He dominated the clinch in the first four rounds and became the first UFC fighter to take Garry down in the center of the octagon, doing so twice. Rakhmonov controlled the cage, distance, and pace effectively except in the fifth round. However, concerns remain about his low activity at long range, where he threw very few leg kicks and conceded significant points to Garry's kicking game. Despite Garry outscoring him heavily at distance (19.5 to 1.75 points), Rakhmonov won the mid-range (15.75 to 10.25) and close range (18.5 to 11.7), which are the most important distances in MMA for damage and control.