Shavkat Rakhmonov impressed with striking and grappling against Ian Garry

A detailed analysis of Shavkat Rakhmonov's performance against Ian Garry highlighted several impressive aspects of the Kazakh fighter's game. Rakhmonov showed significant progress at mid-range compared to his bout against Geoff Neal, regularly landing strong single strikes including jabs, overhand rights, left hooks, and spinning backfists. He dominated the clinch for the first four rounds, controlling Garry with deep underhooks and becoming the only UFC fighter to score takedowns on Garry in the center of the octagon, achieving this twice. The analyst noted concerns about Rakhmonov's minimal activity at long range, where he was out-struck significantly, particularly in leg kicks. Despite giving up 19.5 points to 1.75 at long range, Rakhmonov won the mid-range (15.75 to 10.25) and close range (18.5 to 11.7) exchanges. The fifth round saw Rakhmonov's only major mistake when he attempted a hasty takedown and lost position, but overall he demonstrated superior control and quality throughout the fight.