"You were inactive for almost 14 months" - Shavkat Rakhmonov takes aim at Jack Della Maddalena saying division has moved on from Kazakh star

Jack Della Maddalena's brutal critique of Shavkat Rakhmonov has prompted a vicious clap back from 'Nomad'.

During a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Della Maddalena highlighted Rakhmonov's recent inactive streak, arguing why the Kazakh star was no longer a frontrunner for a title shot in the division:

"I think the division has moved on [from Rakhmonov]. If you stay inactive, you kind of fall behind. Someone like Sean Brady has been so active, Ian Garry, these guys are very active."

For context, Rakhmonov has suffered from recurring knee injuries lately. Even during his UFC 310 fight against Ian Garry, 'Nomad' was reportedly carrying a torn MCL.

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The severity of the injury forced him out of a title shot against Belal Muhammad in May this year, with Della Maddalena taking his place. The 31-year-old then underwent surgery and is now training for an early 2026 return.

Rakhmonov didn't take too kindly to Della Maddalena's recent comments and called the champion out, writing:

"The only reason you got that title shot was my injury. Funny how you forgot you were inactive for almost 14 months before that."

Check out Shavkat Rakhmonov and Jack Della Maddalena's comments below:

Interestingly, 'Nomad's' criticism isn't far off. The Perth native had been out for over 14 months when Rakhmonov's injury essentially handed him a title shot against Muhammad at UFC 315.

Della Maddalena is back in action this weekend at UFC 322, where he'll attempt to secure his first title defense against former pound-for-pound king Islam Makhachev.

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Jack Della Maddalena says Islam Makhachev fight could help him prepare for Shavkat Rakhmonov

If Jack Della Maddalena beats Islam Makhachev at UFC 322, it would, in all probability, only be a matter of time before he is matched up against Shavkat Rakhmonov.

Della Maddalena believes the experience gained from facing Makhachev could aid him in a fight against 'Nomad'. During a recent appearance on Israel Adesanya's YouTube channel, he said:

"Yeah, for sure. All matches bring different experiences. You learn from all of them. Yeah, but I think so. I think Shavkat, yeah, he's a bit different to Islam. Longer, bigger. But I've always wanted to fight Shavkat. I don't know, I just thought when I first saw him coming to the UFC, I thought he'd do good things, you know? I think he just dominated for a bit, so I always believed our paths would cross. Yeah. I think I've got the skills to beat him. So, hopefully that is what they're thinking next." [31:41 minutes into the interview]

Edited by Ujwal Jain