Coming off a dominant win over MMA veteran Neil Magny, undefeated prospect Shavkat Rakhmonov took on Geoff Neal on the main card of UFC 285 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
UFC 285: Geoff Neal vs Shavkat Rakhmonov
Round 1
Neal blocks a head kick and defends the grappling pressure of Rakhmonov. Rakhmonov keeps him in the clinch against the fence. A knee and Neal separate. Nice right hand by Neal. Neal contests with a nice 1-2. Rakhmonov fires back with multiple hooks. They both collide in a striking exchange. Rakhmonov clinches again. They separate. Rakhmonov with a strong right hand. Head kick from Neal connects. They trade punches. Neal pops Rakhmonov’s head with a jab. Rakhmonov blocks kicks and moves out of distance. Good body shot from Rakhmonov. Neal connects with two massive rights. Head kick from Rakhmonov lands and he follows with a knee to the body. They clinch and Rakhmonov goes for the body. Rakhmonov goes in with a heavy hook and barely misses. Nasty right hand and elbow from Rakhmonov. Neal eats a left and counters with a right.
Round 2
Rakhmonov eats a left hook. Rakhmonov with a slick uppercut. He jabs. Neal with a kick to the body. Nice knee to the body and a kick by Rakhmonov. He’s working the body well and is trying to set up a head shot possibly. They clinch off the fence. Rakhmonov goes for a single leg takedown but doesn’t get it. Nice jab from Rakhmonov. Neal lands a big combo and a huge left hand. Rakhmonov connects with a combo. Another knee to the body from Rakhmonov. They get in the pocket and continue the striking exchange. Rakhmonov goes to the body and eats a right hand. They get in the clinch and separate. Rakhmonov moves forward with the jab. He’s keeping the pressure high. Nice right from Rakhmonov and Neal gets a shot from the inside. They clinch against the cage before the end.
Round 3
Neal keeps on the outside and Rakhmonov measures the range with two kicks. Neal fires back with a kick and punch to the body. Rakhmonov with a spinning kick. Neal has Rakhmonov hurt with a huge combo. Rakhmonov goes to clinch. Neal gets another heavy right hand in. And a 1-2 from Neal. Rakhmonov with a jab and 1-2. He goes to clinch. Neal doing well to defend the takedown attempt. He lands an uppercut. Rakhmonov throws a knee to the body and the head. Cracking left from Neal after eating a shot. Huge straight rind from Rakhmonov has Neal hurt. They go all out in striking exchange. Rakhmonov making good use of vicious elbows. Another knee to the body from Rakhmonov. He’s trying to get a takedown but Neal is doing very well to avoid it. Another knee to the body from Rakhmonov. He’s going for a standing choke and gets the crank.
Official Result: Shavkat Rakhmonov defeats Geoff Neal by rear-naked choke submission (R3, 4:17).
Check out the highlights below:
SHAVKAT IS THE REAL DEAL! 🤯@Rakhmonov1994 stays undefeated at #UFC285!! pic.twitter.com/Dr1jVTZDkE
— UFC (@ufc) March 5, 2023
1️⃣7️⃣➖0️⃣ #UFC285 pic.twitter.com/p3NjSccZqc
— UFC (@ufc) March 5, 2023
Shavkat even brought a gift for @JoeRogan 😂 #UFC285 pic.twitter.com/APkcI7VMjZ
— UFC (@ufc) March 5, 2023
