Shavkat Rakhmonov is reportedly set to fight Jack Della Maddalena on Jan. 30 in Dallas, according to MMA Sucka. That’s a 19-0 welterweight who hasn’t fought all year against a former champion who badly needs a win.
Two caveats before anybody books a flight. The report is a headline so far, with no official UFC announcement behind it. And the date is strange. The UFC has already announced UFC 336 for Jan. 30 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, and nothing in the report explains how a Dallas card fits on the same night. Until the promotion puts this one on a poster, treat it as reported and nothing more.
If it holds, Rakhmonov finally gets back in the cage. Aaron Bronsteter of TSN noted on X that Rakhmonov is one of a shrinking club of unbeaten UFC fighters with 15 or more pro wins, and that he hasn’t competed in 2026. That club took a beating this year. Bronsteter pointed out that Movsar Evloev and Ilia Topuria both lost and Farid Basharat was released, leaving Rakhmonov and Michael Morales, both 19-0, as the survivors on his list.
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Della Maddalena is coming off a brutal 12 months. He lost the welterweight title to Islam Makhachev by unanimous decision at UFC 322 at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 15, 2025. Then Carlos Prates stopped him by third-round TKO earlier this year, the win that earned Prates his title shot. Two straight losses, and now the guy nobody has beaten.
The welterweight mess
The title picture around this fight is a knot. Makhachev defended the belt against Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330 in Philadelphia in August and was expected to face Prates in January. He pulled out. One report cited a lack of preparation time with Ramadan starting nine days after the event, while Heavy reported the withdrawal was due to injury.
Dana White didn’t sound thrilled. “Islam fights like once a year,” White told reporters. “He was slated for January, and then said ‘I don’t want to fight until after Ramadan.’”
So the UFC made an interim belt. Prates fights Morales for it in the UFC 336 co-main event, under a flyweight title headliner between Joshua Van and Manel Kape, with the winner expected to face Makhachev later in 2027. Prates has been loud about it. “January 30th, I’ll knock out Michael Morales, and then I’ll come back to retire you,” he wrote, aimed at the champ. Makhachev’s reply included “Shut up and go train.”
My take: I can’t stand interim belts, and this one makes the Rakhmonov booking look even better. An undefeated contender sat out an entire year and watched two other guys get handed a title fight. If he beats a former champion on the same night Prates and Morales settle their business, it’s a title eliminator in everything but name, and the UFC will have three legitimate claimants staring at one champion who wants to wait until after Ramadan.
