Belal Muhammad is preparing for Jack della Maddalena on UFC 315, but he will have one eye on a long -awaited fight with Shavkat Rakhmonov.
The fight marks the first title defense of Belal Muhammad as UFC Welterweight world champion, after the impressive victory of Muhammad over Leon Edwards on UFC 304.
However, this was not the game that Mohammed wanted. “Remember the Name” had to be initially confronted with Shavkat Rakhmonov on UFC 310 in his first title defense.
An injury to Mohammed, however, has put that fight until a later date, assuming that the champion retains his title in Canada on 10 May, because fans wonder when we will see Muhammad vs Rakhmonov in the UFC.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty images
When will Belal Muhammad fight Shavkat Rakhmonov?
From May 2025 the UFC did not move the fight between Muhammad and Rakhmonov.
Instead, Muhammad is booked to fight against Della Maddalena on UFC 315, who pushes Rakhmonov even further away from a fight against the champion, even though it is the second rank in the Welterweight Division.
The champion previously admitted that he wanted to meet “after Ramadan” to Rakhmonov this year.
While instead he booked the fight with Della Maddalena, it seems unlikely that the next Mohammed game would be so fast.
He said to MMA Junkie: “I think Ramadan, I think. May, June, is the perfect timeline for me. I started training with those boys in Vegas last week.
“That was a nice shock for the body. It woke me up. It told me: 'Okay, we have to come in shape. So it just feels good to train. I was at the Pi.
“I did therapy there every day, so my body finally gets normal again and finally returns to where it was.”
It seems that the fight between Mohammed and Rakhmonov will take place later this year, although the challenger may wait a while, because a new challenger has announced their presence to the Welterweight champion.
Islam Makhachev wants to face the winner of Muhammad vs della Maddalena
The most important event of UFC 315 means big things for UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev, while he has a huge impact on Rakhmonov's fight with Muhammad.
He spoke on X (previously known as Twitter) and explained how the UFC 315 main event “will define what my next move is”, which implies that he goes after the winner of the game in an attempt to become a double champion.
Makhachev said: “This Saturday's main event will determine what my next move is,” wrote Makhachev on X on Friday.
This main event on Saturday will determine what my next step is. But regardless of the outcome of that fight, I will not leave my lightweight title! We can get a real competition there! pic.twitter.com/c57plqzkcu
– Makhachev Islam (@makhachevmma) 9 May 2025
View tweet
'But regardless of the outcome [of] That fight, I'm not going to leave my lightweight title! “
If Makhachev challenges the UFC Welterweight Championship, Rakhmonov can be pushed further back into the queue, which postponing his competition with Muhammad.