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UFC welterweight Geoff Neal has reflected on his recent defeat to Shavkat Rakhmonov, promising that he has a lot more to give inside the Octagon.
At this past weekend’s pay-per-view, rising Kazakh Rakhmonov took his next step towards stardom with a victory in the spotlight granted by a position on a Jon Jones-headlined card.
But while Rakhmonov extended his perfect professional record to 17-0 and maintained his 100% finishing rate, he didn’t have his hand raised without first entering deep waters for the first time in his Octagon career.
Prior to a brutal fight-ending choke in the final round (more on that in this week’s edition of MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes of the Week), “Nomad” ate some heavy blows from Neal, a veteran contender who delivered on his promise to test Rakhmonov like never before.
Despite missing weight and falling to his first loss since 2021. “Handz of Steel” left T-Mobile Arena $50,000 better off courtesy of a Fight of the Night bonus. But that likely won’t eliminate the bitter taste of defeat for Neal, who has released his first post-fight statement.
Neal Credits Rakhmonov For “Toughest Fight” of His Career
On Sunday, Neal took to Instagram to address his loss to Rakhmonov, which came after he’d surged back into contention with impressive victories over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Vicente Luque.
In the caption, which came alongside an image of Neal and Rakhmonov interacting inside the cage, “Handz of Steel” implied that he had to overcome a heavy dose of adversity to simply make it to fight night.
And having suggested that his tough performance at UFC 285 came in spite of pre-event issues, Neal teased the kind of displays that fans can expect when he reaches 100%.
“The people closest to me know how much I had to overcome just to get to this fight. If you thought that was a good fight just wait until I’m 100%,” Neal wrote.
Neal concluded his message by praising Rakhmonov for his efforts, noting that the Kazakh welterweight gave him the hardest matchup of his career to date. The Texan also insisted that UFC 285 won’t be a one-and-done bout for the pairing.
“Shoutout to @shavkatrakhmonov94 for giving me the toughest fight of my career. We WILL run that back one day,” Neal said.
For now, Rakhmonov will be looking to take the next step towards the welterweight title by sharing the Octagon with a top-five contender in the 170-pound division. Neal, meanwhile, will likely need to rebound against a lower-ranked name before thinking about a second dance with “Nomad.”
What did you make of Geoff Neal’s performance against Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 285?
UFC welterweight Geoff Neal has reflected on his recent defeat to Shavkat Rakhmonov, promising that he has a lot more to give inside the Octagon.
At this past weekend’s pay-per-view, rising Kazakh Rakhmonov took his next step towards stardom with a victory in the spotlight granted by a position on a Jon Jones-headlined card.
But while Rakhmonov extended his perfect professional record to 17-0 and maintained his 100% finishing rate, he didn’t have his hand raised without first entering deep waters for the first time in his Octagon career.
Prior to a brutal fight-ending choke in the final round (more on that in this week’s edition of MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes of the Week), “Nomad” ate some heavy blows from Neal, a veteran contender who delivered on his promise to test Rakhmonov like never before.
Despite missing weight and falling to his first loss since 2021. “Handz of Steel” left T-Mobile Arena $50,000 better off courtesy of a Fight of the Night bonus. But that likely won’t eliminate the bitter taste of defeat for Neal, who has released his first post-fight statement.
Neal Credits Rakhmonov For “Toughest Fight” of His Career
On Sunday, Neal took to Instagram to address his loss to Rakhmonov, which came after he’d surged back into contention with impressive victories over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Vicente Luque.
In the caption, which came alongside an image of Neal and Rakhmonov interacting inside the cage, “Handz of Steel” implied that he had to overcome a heavy dose of adversity to simply make it to fight night.
And having suggested that his tough performance at UFC 285 came in spite of pre-event issues, Neal teased the kind of displays that fans can expect when he reaches 100%.
“The people closest to me know how much I had to overcome just to get to this fight. If you thought that was a good fight just wait until I’m 100%,” Neal wrote.
Neal concluded his message by praising Rakhmonov for his efforts, noting that the Kazakh welterweight gave him the hardest matchup of his career to date. The Texan also insisted that UFC 285 won’t be a one-and-done bout for the pairing.
“Shoutout to @shavkatrakhmonov94 for giving me the toughest fight of my career. We WILL run that back one day,” Neal said.
For now, Rakhmonov will be looking to take the next step towards the welterweight title by sharing the Octagon with a top-five contender in the 170-pound division. Neal, meanwhile, will likely need to rebound against a lower-ranked name before thinking about a second dance with “Nomad.”
What did you make of Geoff Neal’s performance against Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 285?
Click here to view the article.
At this past weekend’s pay-per-view, rising Kazakh Rakhmonov took his next step towards stardom with a victory in the spotlight granted by a position on a Jon Jones-headlined card.
But while Rakhmonov extended his perfect professional record to 17-0 and maintained his 100% finishing rate, he didn’t have his hand raised without first entering deep waters for the first time in his Octagon career.
Prior to a brutal fight-ending choke in the final round (more on that in this week’s edition of MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes of the Week), “Nomad” ate some heavy blows from Neal, a veteran contender who delivered on his promise to test Rakhmonov like never before.
Despite missing weight and falling to his first loss since 2021. “Handz of Steel” left T-Mobile Arena $50,000 better off courtesy of a Fight of the Night bonus. But that likely won’t eliminate the bitter taste of defeat for Neal, who has released his first post-fight statement.
Neal Credits Rakhmonov For “Toughest Fight” of His Career
On Sunday, Neal took to Instagram to address his loss to Rakhmonov, which came after he’d surged back into contention with impressive victories over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Vicente Luque.
In the caption, which came alongside an image of Neal and Rakhmonov interacting inside the cage, “Handz of Steel” implied that he had to overcome a heavy dose of adversity to simply make it to fight night.
And having suggested that his tough performance at UFC 285 came in spite of pre-event issues, Neal teased the kind of displays that fans can expect when he reaches 100%.
“The people closest to me know how much I had to overcome just to get to this fight. If you thought that was a good fight just wait until I’m 100%,” Neal wrote.
Neal concluded his message by praising Rakhmonov for his efforts, noting that the Kazakh welterweight gave him the hardest matchup of his career to date. The Texan also insisted that UFC 285 won’t be a one-and-done bout for the pairing.
“Shoutout to @shavkatrakhmonov94 for giving me the toughest fight of my career. We WILL run that back one day,” Neal said.
For now, Rakhmonov will be looking to take the next step towards the welterweight title by sharing the Octagon with a top-five contender in the 170-pound division. Neal, meanwhile, will likely need to rebound against a lower-ranked name before thinking about a second dance with “Nomad.”
What did you make of Geoff Neal’s performance against Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 285?
UFC welterweight Geoff Neal has reflected on his recent defeat to Shavkat Rakhmonov, promising that he has a lot more to give inside the Octagon.
At this past weekend’s pay-per-view, rising Kazakh Rakhmonov took his next step towards stardom with a victory in the spotlight granted by a position on a Jon Jones-headlined card.
But while Rakhmonov extended his perfect professional record to 17-0 and maintained his 100% finishing rate, he didn’t have his hand raised without first entering deep waters for the first time in his Octagon career.
Prior to a brutal fight-ending choke in the final round (more on that in this week’s edition of MMA News’ Top 10 Finishes of the Week), “Nomad” ate some heavy blows from Neal, a veteran contender who delivered on his promise to test Rakhmonov like never before.
Despite missing weight and falling to his first loss since 2021. “Handz of Steel” left T-Mobile Arena $50,000 better off courtesy of a Fight of the Night bonus. But that likely won’t eliminate the bitter taste of defeat for Neal, who has released his first post-fight statement.
Neal Credits Rakhmonov For “Toughest Fight” of His Career
On Sunday, Neal took to Instagram to address his loss to Rakhmonov, which came after he’d surged back into contention with impressive victories over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Vicente Luque.
In the caption, which came alongside an image of Neal and Rakhmonov interacting inside the cage, “Handz of Steel” implied that he had to overcome a heavy dose of adversity to simply make it to fight night.
And having suggested that his tough performance at UFC 285 came in spite of pre-event issues, Neal teased the kind of displays that fans can expect when he reaches 100%.
“The people closest to me know how much I had to overcome just to get to this fight. If you thought that was a good fight just wait until I’m 100%,” Neal wrote.
Neal concluded his message by praising Rakhmonov for his efforts, noting that the Kazakh welterweight gave him the hardest matchup of his career to date. The Texan also insisted that UFC 285 won’t be a one-and-done bout for the pairing.
“Shoutout to @shavkatrakhmonov94 for giving me the toughest fight of my career. We WILL run that back one day,” Neal said.
For now, Rakhmonov will be looking to take the next step towards the welterweight title by sharing the Octagon with a top-five contender in the 170-pound division. Neal, meanwhile, will likely need to rebound against a lower-ranked name before thinking about a second dance with “Nomad.”
What did you make of Geoff Neal’s performance against Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 285?
Click here to view the article.
