Robert Whittaker explains why Stephen Thompson vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov is a "pivotal moment" for both fighters

Shavkat Rakhmonov is set to fight Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson at UFC 296, and Robert Whittaker shared his thoughts on the fight.

UFC 296 will take place on December 16 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Rakhmonov and Thompson will fight on the main card, just before the co-main event of the evening.

This welterweight clash is a big one for the division, as it will put the winner one step closer to a title shot. In a recent podcast episode, Whittaker spoke about the importance of the fight:

"If he [Thompson] beats Shavkat, he's still in talks, he's still right there, he's obviously hunting for bigger things. I guess this is one of those pivotal moments for both guys. Pivotal moment for 'Wonderboy' and for Shavkat, because one gets pushed into the elite group and one gets pushed back into the talks of title contention potentially."

Robert Whittaker found it hard to predict who would win the fight, which he described as a matchup between the old guard and the 'biggest threat to the division'.

He also stated that it would be tough to put his money against 'Wonderboy', even though he is fighting Shavkat Rakhmonov.

Take a look at the video (Quotes from 13:04 onwards):

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Stephen Thompson says he wanted to fight Kamaru Usman but had to settle for Shavkat Rakhmonov

Stephen Thompson looked impressive in his last fight against Kevin Holland, winning via corner stoppage.

In a recent interview on The MMA Hour, the karate specialist spoke about how he wanted to fight Kamaru Usman next but the UFC matchmakers already had plans for 'The Nigerian Nightmare', so he decided to fight Shavkat Rakhmonov instead:

"I wanted [Kamaru] Usman, you know, 'cause Usman called me out. But the UFC already had something set up for him and I wanted somebody that was ranked above me... So there was Shavkat [Rakhmonov], I know he was supposed to fight Gastelum.... so he didn't have anybody, I saw him on social media, I know he's ranked above me and it just worked out for the both of us."

Take a look at the video:

'Wonderboy' thought Shavkat Rakhmonov fit his plans perfectly since he is ranked higher than him and did not have an opponent. The Kazakh fighter has been one of the most dominant contenders in the division and is unbeaten.