Islam Makhachev "stripped" Shavkat Rakhmonov of the UFC title.

The reigning UFC lightweight champion from Russia has shared his future plans following the fight against Armenian fighter Arman Tsarukyan, reports Vesti.kz.

According to Makhachev, after his victory, he aims to fight for the welterweight title, where the main contender for the belt is the Kazakhstani fighter.

"If I beat Arman, then... I don’t know. I’m tired of giving rematches. I want to take a second belt. In the welterweight division, there are Belal Muhammad and many other good fighters. We’ll see," Makhachev's words are quoted by the UFC press service.

Recall that the Makhachev - Tsarukyan bout will take place at UFC 311, scheduled for January 19 in Los Angeles, USA. This will be a rematch for the fighters. Their first fight occurred in April 2019 and ended with Makhachev winning by unanimous decision.

Rakhmonov was supposed to fight Muhammad on December 8 at UFC 310 in Las Vegas. However, the champion withdrew from the bout due to health issues. Consequently, he was replaced by Irish fighter Ian Garry, who lost to Shavkat.