Merab Dvalishvili showed the world why his nickname is “The Machine” this past Saturday at UFC 311.
Despite owning the longest win streak in UFC bantamweight history ahead of the event, Dvalishvili entered his first title defense against Umar Nurmagomedov as a solid +220 underdog, per BetMGM. Nurmagomedov ultimately presented Dvalishvili with a stiff challenge, but Dvalishvili proved why he was the one holding gold, handing Nurmagomedov his first loss with an impressive five-round decision.
While the fight began more competitively than it finished, Dvalishvili’s coach, John Wood, believes it was easier for his fighter than expected. Speaking on “The Ariel Helwani Show,” the champion agreed.
“Yes, [it was easier than we expected,] but I have this mentality every time I fight, so I respect my opponents, and I don’t look at them like it’s easy,” Dvalishvili told Uncrowned. “Doesn’t matter who it is. Even though I always knew that I was better than Umar, and I knew that I was going to win this fight, I was still respectful for Umar, and I was taking him serious.
“I was preparing for worse positions, worse situations. I was ready for an even more hard fight, but I was controlling [the action]. I [was] doing just enough to win this fight, and here we are.”
In an eye-opening performance, Dvalishvili outwrestled Nurmagomedov, seven takedowns to two, and generally outworked and outlasted the talented grappler. To make his efforts even more impressive, the matchup came together far earlier than Dvalishvili wanted, forcing the champ to fight with some physical hindrances.
After Dvalishvili won the bantamweight title at UFC 306 in September, he traveled overseas throughout Europe before returning to the U.S. in November to help his teammate and friend Aljamain Sterling prepare for a UFC 310 fight against Movsar Evloev. During that time, he suffered a nasty cut on his leg by hitting his shin on some stairs while doing cardio training.
Twenty-seven stitches later, Dvalishvili received his fight date for Jan. 18.
“It was just a big cut,” Dvalishvili said. “I was covering it, trying to [keep] training, but unfortunately, it got infected, and it was so hard to [keep] training and wrestling, and sometimes it was hard to walk on my leg.
“Even mentally, I was thinking I will come back in March, fight Umar Nurmagomedov, but Umar say he wasn’t able to fight in March because of Ramadan. I was dealing with this injury [all training camp, but] I still take this fight.”
Dvalishvili, 34, said he also suffered a back injury during camp. Despite the pain he endured, the champ said he never considered withdrawing.
Even still, valid concerns arose that the California State Athletic Commission could make that decision for him. But Dvalishvili revealed that he pulled a fast one when getting inspected before the fight.
“The cut was still open, so it was taking so long to heal,” Dvalishvili explained. “It finally closed up on fight week. Then I was worried the commission [was] not going to let me fight, and I was doing everything, putting creams [on the injury] every day, doing massage and all the therapies.
“California has a very strict commission, and they check everything on my body. Thursday, I have pants on, and the commission guy asked me to show him my leg, to show to the shin, and I lift my left leg pants, and show him [my uninjured] shin. He kept talking, and then one second [he] asked me to show him the other leg. I show, again, left leg. And then he [was] done and never knew about the cut.
“Who knows? Maybe I [could’ve] pass [the test anyway],” Dvalishvili continued, “but I was worried because it looked like it was fresh, but it’s been a longtime cut.”
Dvalishvili said his injuries did not cause any mid-fight pain. Less than 72 hours after his successful title defense, the champion said he was feeling great, except if he touches his recovering shin.
Dvalishvili said he now likes the idea of returning as soon as March and hopes to get two more fights in 2025.
