UFC analyst Daniel Cormier has given his thoughts on Shavkat Rakhmonov possibly challenging Islam Makhachev.

It’s been almost a year since we have seen Shavkat Rakhmonov compete inside the Octagon, when he extended his unbeaten record with a nice win over Ian Machado Garry. While many still believe he is the rightful number one contender for the world title, others feel as if he needs to earn his way back to that spot given his time away from the cage.

RELATED: MMA analyst Chael Sonnen floats the idea of Kamaru Usman facing Shavkat Rakhmonov

This past weekend, Shavkat was one of many watching on as Islam Makhachev dominated Jack Della Maddalena to win the UFC welterweight championship. While Rakhmonov is someone who is definitely a potential contender, others may well have jumped past him in the pecking order.

In a recent podcast, Daniel Cormier explained why he’s intrigued by the possibility of Makhachev vs Shavkat.

Cormier’s view on Shavkat challenging Makhachev

“Shavkat Rakhmonov is the guy that I think about and I go, ‘Man, that is a crazy fight to think about. Islam vs. Rakhmonov,’” Cormier said on a recent episode of his Good Guy/Bad Guy show.

“The size of Rakhmonov, the wrestling ability of Rakhmonov, and the striking of Rakhmonov…boy, that is a good one.

“I thought last weekend would have been the toughest fight of his career. He clearly proved that wasn’t the case,” he continued.

“I think, though, if he was to fight Shavkat, that would easily be the hardest fight of his career.”

Quotes via Bloody Elbow

If we did get the chance to see this fight take place, who would you back to come out on top and why? Does Rakhmonov deserve the right to fight for the belt? Let us know your thoughts, BJPENN Nation!