Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling doesn’t believe Dana White had an appropriate reaction to Merab Dvalishvili’s recent cut.
Dvalishvili, who is set to challenge current 135-pound kingpin Sean O’Malley for the title in the main event of Noche UFC/UFC 306 at the Sphere next month, was scolded by White this week after he posted a video online showing a facial laceration.
The Georgian uploaded a number of videos of the cut he suffered 25 days out from his first championship opportunity, raising slight concern in the community about his status for the September 14 card.
“The Machine” has since clarified that nothing will prevent him from making the walk to do battle with “Sugar” in Las Vegas, but that doesn’t mean everyone thinks the decision to publicly display the cut was smart.
Chief among them was the UFC CEO, who slammed Dvalishvili during the press conference following Tuesday’s episode of Dana White’s Contender Series.
“The whole world knows about Merab’s cut. He posted it. Our guys are so dumb, it’s next-level unbelievable,” White said. “All the stuff I talk about boxing, what I will give boxing, is when something happens in a camp, man, let me tell you what, it does not leak. Our guys can’t f*cking wait to throw it up on social media.
“It’s a small cut. It’s no big deal. But obviously, it needed to be posted,” White continued. “Why the f*ck would you want him to know that? It is next-level stupid. Some of these guys are so stupid it’s mind-boggling. It’s unbelievable.”
Those comments, however, didn’t sit well with one of Dvalishvili’s closest friends and teammates, and somebody who’s had his own fair share of back and forth with White in the past…
Sterling Defends Teammate Dvalishvili From White’s Wrath
When it comes to rocky relationships between fighter and higher-ups, not many have had public disagreements with the likes of White quite like Sterling.
The now-featherweight contender has taken issue with comments regarding his desire not to fight Dvalishvili while he was bantamweight champ, as well as what he saw as pressure to accept a quick turnaround to fight O’Malley last August.
Suffice to say, “Funk Master” has never been one to shy away from speaking out against things said by the UFC CEO. And that trend continued this week, with Sterling leaping to the defense of Dvalishvili following White’s scathing reaction to the post detailing the Georgian’s laceration in training.
“Everyone is making a much bigger deal over ‘the little cut’, even the boss. Merab shares his stories of training camp, the good, the bad, the ugly, and ppl LOVE him for it. There’s nothing ‘stupid’ about it, period,” Sterling wrote. “He’s training, and will show up Sept 14, like he always does. Is this about betting lines?? Is it about a fight cancelation?? Respectfully, this reaction was a bit over the top IMHO.”
Dvalishvili has since shown his return to the training room on social media, as he gears up for the chance to bring O’Malley’s reign to an end and avenge his teammate’s knockout loss to the striking specialist in Boston last year.
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