Detailed breakdown shows Rakhmonov won middle and close range against Garry

A detailed re-analysis of Shavkat Rakhmonov's fight with Ian Garry reveals what impressed and what raised questions about the Kazakh fighter's performance. Rakhmonov showed significant progress at middle range compared to his fight with Geoff Neal, regularly landing single powerful strikes on Garry including jabs, overhand rights, and spinning backfists. He dominated the clinch in the first four rounds, repeatedly taking Garry's back, and became the only UFC fighter to successfully take Garry down in the center of the octagon, doing so twice. The analyst's scoring showed Garry won the long-range battle decisively (19.5 to 1.75 points) through kicks, but Rakhmonov won both middle range (15.75 to 10.25) and close range (18.5 to 11.7). The main concern was Rakhmonov's minimal activity at long range, landing almost no kicks himself. Despite the overall points being approximately even at 40-40, the analyst gave Rakhmonov the victory based on his higher-quality control and more significant strikes to the head, while acknowledging Garry's legitimate belief that he didn't lose.