Shavkat Rakhmonov vs Kelvin Gastelum Prediction: Shavkat to Keep Winning

In the early morning of September 17, undefeated Kazakhstan fighter Shavkat Rakhmonov will have his next fight at UFC, and his opponent will be Kelvin Gastelum.

Shavkat Rakhmonov has not yet suffered a single defeat in his career. Moreover, all the victories were won early. In 2019 he became the champion of the M-1 Global League; the same year, he defended the belt and moved to the UFC, continuing his winning march. In the strongest league in the world, Shavkat has already scored five early victories. In his last fight, he finished Geoffrey Neal and climbed to the sixth line of the welterweight division rankings.

Kelvin Gastelum is a star in a promotion that has been his best in the past. He once won The Ultimate Fighter show and even fought for the belt in 2019. The loss to Israel Adesanya also opened a black streak that included five losses in six bouts.

Gastelum didn't compete from 2021 to 2023, returning to the octagon in April and earning a decision victory over Chris Curtis (30-10).

Rakhmonov is at a different level. He's going to come out and devour Gastelum. Kelvin has met with top fighters for a long time. Since August 2021, he's had only one bout. Shavkat is not going to slow down. We don't see how Gastelum can defeat him. He's not a phenomenal puncher. Wrestling? Rakhmonov is too trained in that. It's a good fight for Shavkat to win, make money, and strengthen his position.

We don't know Gastelum's motivation after five losses in seven fights... He looks like an easier opponent than Neal. He gave a tough fight, but Rakhmonov showed excellent functionality, choking his opponent from the back in the third round. Shavkat is a phenomenon. He's not going to ruin Rakhmonov's early win stats.