Kamaru Usman addresses whether he’s fighting Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 310… ‘It’s a very winnable fight, but’

Despite the final PPV of the year being just three weeks away, we still don't know who will compete in the main event of UFC 310 in Las Vegas on December 7.

The original main event was going to see welterweight champion Belal Muhammad take on undefeated boogeyman Shavkat Rakhmonov; However, 'Remember the Name' unfortunately had to withdraw from that title fight due to a bone infection in his foot.

Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Kamaru Usman on whether he will fight Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 310

Following Mohammed's withdrawal from UFC 310, a slew of top prospects raised their hands as potential replacement opponents for the undefeated Kazakh 'Nomad'.

Ian Machado Garry and Joaquin Buckley were among the first to throw their names in the hat, only for the promotion to book the two contenders against each other for UFC Tampa on December 14.

Then came former UFC welterweight champion and No. 2 contender Kamaru Usman, who had only just told Buckley to “take a number and get in line” regarding his title call.

But just a week after claiming he would be ready to step in against Rakhmonov, the 'Nigerian Nightmare' has now backtracked on his availability.

“You see where I'm at: I'm getting some work in, I'm preparing when I get that phone call [from the UFC]” Usman said on the latest episode of the Pound-4-pound podcast, before admitting he probably won't be ready to fight on December 7.

“But to be honest, it's a fight that I've been watching and I know it's definitely a very winnable fight. I know that I, of all people, can go out and expose what hasn't been exposed yet in a young, handsome, paunchy man in Shavkat Rakhmonov.

“He's very talented, he's very good, but I see the gaps and I think I can exploit them when the time is right… But December 7 might be a little too early for that.”

These comments haven't gone down too well with UFC fans, especially since they come just a week after Usman previously claimed he's “not shying away from any of that.”

“The UFC knows who to call if that situation arises and if they call me, I will answer the call… I'm not going to shy away from any of that. I did it with six days' notice. I did it on eight days' notice… Hey, it's only a few weeks' notice, but it is what it is.”

11 fights confirmed for UFC 310, including rookies fighting for flyweight gold

As several fans on

A total of 11 fights have been confirmed for the final PPV of the year on November 14, which will see former RIZIN bantamweight champion and promotional newcomer Kai Asakura take on Alexandre Pantoja for the flyweight title.

• Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Asakura
• Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov
• Vicente Luque vs. Nick Diaz
• Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling
• Randy Brown vs. Bryan Battle
• Michael Chiesa vs. Max Griffin
• Anthony Smith vs. Dominick Reyes
• Tallison Teixeira vs. Łukasz Brzeski
• Nate Landwehr vs. Dooho Choi
• Cody Durden vs. Joshua Van
• Clay Guida vs. Chase Hooper

Tapology also reports that Rizvan Kuniev vs. Martin Buday has been added to the preliminary card, but that fight has yet to be officially confirmed by the UFC.

UFC 310 airs live from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday, December 7.

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