Tag: Geoff Neal

Geoff Neal (15-4) returns to action for the UFC’s first event of 2023 when he will take on undefeated phenom, Shavkat Rakhmonov (16-0).

This welterweight Co-Main event will be Neal’s first bout since shocking Vicente Luque with a Round 3 TKO in August at UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Hill. For that fight, Neal entered as the underdog, and once again vs. Rakhmonov, Neal sees himself in the same situation. Neal will put his #7 ranking in the division on the line when he takes on the favored, #10 ranked Rakhmonov.

Opening up at +350, Neal is no stranger to being an underdog, and he took some time to speak to James Lynch on Youtube to explain why this has little effect on him:

“I don’t give a damn about betting odds, I’m gonna mess up somebody’s parlays. But it is what it is, I’m not worried about it. At the end of the day when the cage door closes, the betting odds mean nothing.”

Geoff Neal Praises Opponent Shavkat Rakhmonov

Since entering the UFC octagon, Neal’s opponent Rakhmonov is 4-0 earning all victories via a Round 1 or 2 finish. Most recently, Shavkat stopped Neil Magny in June with a late 2^nd round Guillotine Choke submission.

Rakhmonov brings a whole new level of threat to the welterweight division, and Geoff Neal is most definitely up for the challenge. Neal praised his opponent’s skillset, while also speaking confidently on why he will prevail:

“He has pretty good striking, decent striking and great cardio, and he’s constantly putting pressure trying to look for a finish. Stylistically, I feel like I’m looking for the same thing…I just feel like I’m faster and stronger and that’s going to come into play during the fight.”

Rakhmonov has been compared to rising star Khamzat Chimaev, and it has been rumored that many fighters in the welterweight division are actively avoiding the undefeated Uzbekistan native. By taking this fight, Geoff Neal shows he is scared of no one.

This Co-Main Event bout is scheduled for 3 rounds, and when asked for his prediction on how the fight will play out, Neal answered:

“It’s either gonna be a 3 round war or I’m gonna get the finish in the 1^st or 2^nd.”

UFC fans around the world will rejoice when the promotion returns to action on January 14^th, 2023, for UFC Fight Night: Imavov vs. Gastelum. Look for this highly anticipated co-main event bout as #7 ranked welterweight Geoff “Handz of Steel” Neal will try to achieve the upset, and add a 1 to the loss column of undefeated, #10 ranked Shavkat “Nomad” Rakhmonov.

Watch the quick clip of Neal here:

‘Handz of Steel’ Geoff Neal is about to have his hands full. The US-born athlete has agreed to a matchup against the undefeated welterweight Shavkat Rakhmonov. The two UFC fighters have agreed to a fight against one another on Twitter.

‘Nomad’ Rakhmonov fired the first verbal volley and said:

“I don’t blame you for doubting yourself, but when are you going to accept the fight offer @handzofsteelmma [Geoff Neal]? “

I don’t blame you for doubting yourself, but when are you going to accept the fight offer @handzofsteelmma ?

— Shavkat “Nomad” Rakhmonov (@Rakhmonov1994) October 5, 2022

The 15-4 welterweight Neal responded with an agreement and a warning. He said:

“Had my team call Sean this morning. Be careful what you wish for. See you soon @Rakhmonov1994 [Shavkat Rakhmonov]”

Had my team call Sean this morning. Be careful what you wish for. See you soon @Rakhmonov1994

— Geoff (handzofsteel) Neal (@handzofsteelmma) October 6, 2022

Shavkat Rakhmonov vs Geoff Neal?

‘Nomad’ Shavkat Rakhmonov is an undefeated hot prospect rising through the competitive welterweight division. At 27 years old, the Kazakh-born fighter has put together an impressive record unblemished at 16-0. He will look to rise through the welterweight rankings further by fighting the 6th-ranked Geoff Neal.

The Fortis MMA trained Neal has fought a who’s who in the welterweight division. The American fighter holds notable wins over fighters such as Vicente Luque, Santiago Ponzinibbio, Mike Perry, Niko Price, and Belal Muhammad. Although in his UFC tenure, the 32-year-old athlete sustained two losses to Stephen Thompson and Neil Magny.

Kazakhstan’s Rakhmonov is just coming off a win over Neil Magny, in his most recent fight, via submission in round two. In fact, none of ‘Nomad’s victories have seen the judge’s scorecards. This young athlete has a one-hundred percent finish rate on his record. Exactly half of his wins were earned via submission and the other half were won by way of KO/TKO.

For the Kazakh fighter, he has had success in his callouts thus far. Earlier this year he called out China’s Li Jingliang, who did not accept the fight. But he also called out Neil Magny who he then later defeated. In March of this year, on Instagram, the normally quiet fighter shared:

“Peace be upon you! Now I have a couple of fighters in my sights, one already refuses to fight me, and the second claims that he is ready to fight anyone. @lijingliangmma get your balls together and fight! @neil_magny170 you said you were ready to fight anyone, let’s do it if Lee still doesn’t have the guts to.”