In a move that has left the fans buzzing, UFC CEO Dana White recently dropped a bombshell about changes to the UFC 310 event! Originally set to be headlined by a welterweight title clash between Belal Muhammad and Shavkat Rakhmonov, ‘Remember the Name’ suffered a bone infection in his foot that has now put him out of action for a while. The result? There’s a new main event set to go down on December 7.

But the changes don’t stop there. White revealed that the new co-main event will feature a showdown between two undefeated welterweights in their quest for the elusive UFC gold. Meanwhile, Colby Covington and his fans are in for a disappointment as the former interim welterweight champion has now been linked to a fight against the surging Joaquin Buckley at UFC Tampa or UFC on ESPN 63 instead!

Dana White reveals massive changes to UFC 310 card as Shavkat Rakhmonov gets a new challenger  

In a recent update shared on social media, the UFC head honcho stated, “…the welterweight title fight between Belal Muhammad and Shavkat Rakhmonov is off due to Belal having surgery. Stepping up into the main event is flyweight champion Pantoja who will be facing the debuting Kai Asakura.”

As White explained, Pantoja, the reigning flyweight king, is in the middle of a six-fight win streak. And three of those victories were in title bouts. A monster in the flyweight division, his challenge will come from none other than Kai Asakura, a two-time RIZIN bantamweight champ. Asakura, known for his brutal knockout power, will drop weight to challenge Pantoja in a fight that promises to be “all action” according to the UFC boss.

The move might come as a shock to Shavkat Rakhmonov who had put the welterweight division on blast with a post on social media recently which stated, “All I hear are empty callouts! No real intention, no action. Just posturing for the media and fans” and tagged Colby Covington and Kamaru Usman in the message.

Well, instead of the former welterweight king and interim champion, White revealed that, “The new co-main event is a 5-round no. 1 contender fight at welterweight. Undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov is taking on undefeated Ian Garry who is moving over from the main event of Tampa a week later.”

Of course, this shake-up doesn’t end there. The Tampa card for December 14 has also been adjusted. Colby Covington, the former interim welterweight champion, is now taking on the streaking Joaquin Buckley. The UFC boss put it perfectly as he stated, “Buckley is on 5-fight win streak with 3 of those coming by finish. In his last fight he won ‘Performance of the Night’ with a nasty KO over ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson. Both guys love to talk and I expect this to be a war.”

With all these changes, UFC 310 is shaping up to be a night of surprises. After all, Colby Covington had recently gone off on a tirade against ‘Nomad’ and claimed that he’d be reaching out to the UFC bosses to set up a clash between the two!

‘Chaos’s warning backfires as Rakhmonov set to face of Ian Garry instead   

Colby Covington showed off his trademark verbal artillery in a recent rant against Shavkat Rakhmonov. ‘Chaos’ has been out of action since a tough title fight loss to Leon Edwards at UFC 296 last year. With the welterweight division in flux due to Belal Muhammad’s recent health issues, Shavkat Rakhmonov had put the rest of the 170 lbs. elite on blast in a pointed jab on social media.

Covington’s response? In a fiery salvo on Instagram, ‘Chaos’ fired back by stating, “I don’t posture, and I don’t bluff. As soon as I get off this beautiful five-star Trump golf course located in the heart of MAGA country, West Palm Beach, Florida, I’m calling Hunter (Campbell) and Dana (White), and we can all see who’s posturing for clicks.”

His outspoken challenge to Rakhmonov may have fallen on deaf ears, as UFC 310 has already found its headliner without him. Instead, Covington’s frustration seems destined to play out against Joaquin Buckley at UFC Tampa. In a post on X after his bout at UFC 310 was announced, ‘Nomad’ stated, “I’m very disappointed in our division. Belal, Leon, Colby, Kamaru, Jack, Sean – you’ve all let fans down. The only one who backed up his words is Ian, and I respect that.”

Now, with Dana White giving the fans fresh and exciting match-ups, it remains to be seen what the future holds for the welterweight division. Will Colby Covington be able to bounce back against Joaquin Buckley? Who will lose their undefeated record, Ian Garry or Shavkat Rakhmonov? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!