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Merab Dvalishvili Details Plans To Retire After Going 1-2 At The Start Of Pro Career

In the build up to his first title defense at UFC 311, bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili has spoken a lot about respect and hard work. He does not believe that his challenger, the undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov, has earned his spot like he and others have by continuing to push their way to the top. The […]

The Georgian certainly didn’t have an easy road to eventually becoming champion at UFC 306 this past September where he defeated Sean O’Malley. After losing his first two fights inside the Octagon, Dvalishvili turned his fortunes around fight-by-fight by winning ten in a row before he got the chance to fight for the title.

However, the adversity that he faced early in his career nearly stopped him from ever pursuing his dream of competing in the UFC at the highest level of the sport. After turning pro in 2014, Dvalishvili fought three times and ended the year with an overall record of 1-2 after losing two decisions against Darren Mima and Ricky Bandejas.

In a recent appearance on Eric Nicksick’s Verse Us podcast, the champion spoke about how the difficult start to his pro career nearly led to him throwing the towel in for good and never looking back.

“I was booked for my next fight but I had like headaches and you know, I wasn’t happy and not motivated and I tell them maybe first time ever, cancel fight. I said no, I want some time off and I was thinking I’m gonna live normal life like normal people.”

Dvalishvili spoke about how he had resigned himself to the idea that he would continue working in construction whilst trying to raise a family but eventually, he found the desire to compete again. He revealed that though he did resume his career, he had decided that the likes of the UFC and Bellator might be off the table for him but he could still make good money by travelling and competing elsewhere.

After winning five fights in a row, his fight against Raufeon Stots was featured on Dana White’s Lookin’ For A Fight where he produced a spinning backfist knockout in the opening 15 seconds to earn his UFC contract.

“I came back because I missed it and I said, ‘I don’t care if I lose’. In my head I was thinking I’m not the best because if I lost here in Ring of Combat, I was 1-2, how am I gonna win in the UFC and how am I going to make it to UFC. But, I said I missed this, I don’t care. Win or lose, I’m just gonna keep fighting.”

Umar Nurmagomedov: ‘Nobody Will Be Surprised’ If Merab Dvalishvili Withdraws From UFC 311

Should something force bantamweight kingpin Merab Dvalishvili out of UFC 311, challenger Umar Nurmagomedov would not be the least bit shocked. The undefeated Dagestani is set to mark the first threat to the Georgian’s reign this year after his crowning at the expense of Sean O’Malley last September. They’ll co-headline the opening pay-per-view event of […]

Should something force bantamweight kingpin Merab Dvalishvili out of UFC 311, challenger Umar Nurmagomedov would not be the least bit shocked.

The undefeated Dagestani is set to mark the first threat to the Georgian’s reign this year after his crowning at the expense of Sean O’Malley last September.

They’ll co-headline the opening pay-per-view event of 2025, UFC 311 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Top spot on the lineup has fallen to Nurmagomedov’s teammate, lightweight champ Islam Makhachev, and his rematch with Arman Tsarukyan.

But according to the surging bantamweight, it would come as a surprise to nobody if he ended up watching proceedings from the audience instead of competing on the night.

During a recent interview uploaded to the UFC’s YouTube channel, Nurmagomedov assessed the likelihood of Dvalishvili withdrawing.

“I will not be surprised and nobody will be surprised. Even right now, I saw like commentary on Twitter, they said he will pull out, but he never pulled out before. I hope he will not and the fight is going to happen,” Nurmagomedov said.

Getting ready pic.twitter.com/8WWOUTAcQM

— Umar Nurmagomedov (@UNmgdv) December 23, 2024

Dvalishvili was vocal in expressing displeasure at having to face Nurmagomedov for his first defense. “The Machine” branded the Russian undeserving of the shot and pitched numerous other opponents.

Nevertheless, the titleholder has remained confident of getting the job done and emerging from the heated rivalry with the gold still in his possession.

Read More: Paige VanZant Set For MMA Return After Four-Year Absence: ‘I’m Going To Shock The World’

Umar Nurmagomedov Unfazed by Potential Merab Dvalishvili Exit From UFC 311 Title Fight

Umar Nurmagomedov Unfazed by Potential Merab Dvalishvili Exit From UFC 311 Title Fight Umar Nurmagomedov wouldn’t be surprised if Merab Dvalishvili pulled out of their clash at UFC 311. After securing a…

Umar Nurmagomedov wouldn’t be surprised if Merab Dvalishvili pulled out of their clash at UFC 311.

After securing a dominant victory over Sean O’Malley in September to claim the bantamweight title, Dvalishvili will put his gold up for grabs against Nurmagomedov, the No. 2 ranked contender, on January 18 in Los Angeles.

Almost immediately after his title-winning performance at UFC 306, ‘The Machine’ tried to discredit Nurmagomedov’s status as the next man in line, pointing at his lack of wins over top 15 opponents.

Unfortunately for Dvalishvili, he didn’t make a strong enough case and the promotion moved forward with plans to give the undefeated Dagestani his first shot at UFC gold in 2025.

During an interview with the UFC, Nurmagomedov spoke about the possibility of his opponent pulling out of the bout.

“I will not be surprised and nobody will be surprised,” Nurmagomedov said. “Even right now, I saw like commentary on Twitter, they said he will pull out, but he never pulled out before. I hope he will not and the fight is going to happen” (h/t MMA Junkie).

Umar Nurmagomedov thinks ‘The Machine’ only wants opponents he knows he can beat

Nurmagomedov goes into the co-main event clash with a perfect 18-0 record, six of those wins coming under the UFC banner. The biggest of those victories came in August when Nurmagomedov scored a decisive unanimous decision victory over Cory Sandhagen, skyrocketing him from the back of the bantamweight rankings to the second-ranked spot.

Whether or not Nurmagomedov deserves the shot he’s been given varies depending on who you’re talking to, but regardless, the Dagestani believes there is no path to victory for his Georgian opposition.

“I think he just wants to fight with a real guy he can beat,” Nurmagomedov said. “It doesn’t mean I’m really going to 100 percent go inside the cage and smash him, no. He knows other guys, he will beat. With me, it’s going to be hard. That’s why he’s trying to be a champion for a long time, and he wants to fight with O’Malley, with Petr Yan, or someone else because these guys, easy money. Me, no. For me, he has to go deep waters. With me it’s going to be a long night. I will not give him takedowns, he will not control me.

“I have good skills, striking skills, and I can make for him a lot of problems. That’s why, but when we go inside the cage, I will not think he’s scared of me. I will know that this is a man who will try to beat me, I will try to smash him, and it’s going to be a battle. What I understand is he doesn’t want to take a risky fight. He can beat me, it can happen. It’s not going to break me. I will be same Umar. Fight is fight. Everybody can lose. …If we’re talking about scared, I just think he doesn’t want to take risk, hard fight.”

Former UFC Champ Sees Weakness In Ji?í Procházka, Backs Jamahal Hill For UFC 311 Fight

Ji?í Procházka doesn’t have what it takes to defeat Jamahal Hill in their upcoming bout, claims a former UFC middleweight champion. Procházka and Hill are set to collide in a crucial matchup on the main card of UFC 311, scheduled for Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Both former UFC light heavyweight […]

Ji?í Procházka doesn’t have what it takes to defeat Jamahal Hill in their upcoming bout, claims a former UFC middleweight champion.

Procházka and Hill are set to collide in a crucial matchup on the main card of UFC 311, scheduled for Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California.

Both former UFC light heavyweight champions are coming off crushing knockout losses to reigning divisional kingpin Alex Pereira in their most recent Octagon appearances. In fact, “Denisa” experienced his first UFC defeat at the hands of Pereira when they fought for the then-vacant 205-pound title at UFC 295 in November 2023.

Procházka’s unorthodox fighting style has made it difficult for his past opponents to decipher, but Luke Rockhold believes that this very uniqueness also exposes significant vulnerabilities — especially when facing someone like Hill.

During a recent appearance on the JAXXON PODCAST, Rockhold lambasted Procházka’s tactics in his rematch against “Poatan” this past June, asserting that the Czech fighter lacked any coherent strategy in the bout.

“I didn’t like the way that Ji?í fought his last time out versus Pereira,” Rockhold said. “He just didn’t look like he would follow the game plan. Like, what were you doing? I don’t know. To think you could stand with him and play this karate style, Kung Fu game. You can’t fight like that, a guy that he’s so dangerous, you can’t fight with your hands down and you got to go for takedowns. You identified his weakness, but you didn’t even try to exploit it.”

The former UFC middleweight champion went on to assert that “Sweet Dreams” holds a distinct tactical advantage over Procházka and is more than capable of getting the job done at UFC 311.

“Jamahal Hill’s more dangerous. He’s got pop, he’s got power, he goes for the kill and Jamahal’s got funky — he’s weirdly athletic sometimes. He’s hard to take down. You’ve seen in the Glover [Teixeira] fight, he was able to get up and get his way and funks his way through a lot of things and he ends up finding his shot, the kill shot. But, like I said, this is a rebuilding process for both of them and you don’t know, but I don’t know. I might favor Jamahal in this one.”

Read More: Ji?í Procházka Shrugs Off Jamahal Hill’s Trash Talk Ahead Of UFC 311: ‘My Actions Will Talk’

No Fair! Merab Dvalishvili Questions Umar Nurmagomedov’s Quick Route to UFC Title Fight

Merab Dvalishvili really doesn’t want to fight Umar Nurmagomedov. From the moment the UFC bantamweight title was wrapped around…

Merab Dvalishvili really doesn’t want to fight Umar Nurmagomedov.

From the moment the UFC bantamweight title was wrapped around his waist in September, Dvalishvili has been very vocal about his disdain for the undefeated Dagestani standout and his lack of wins against ranked opponents.

Regardless, Nurmagomedov will have an opportunity to claim his first world title when he challenges ‘The Machine’ at UFC 311 on January 18.

Nurmagomedov, 18-0, earned his spot with a dominant decision win over Cory Sandhagen in August that skyrocketed him from the bottom of the top 15 to the No. 2 spot.

While it was undoubtedly the biggest win of Nurmagomedov’s career thus far, it wasn’t enough to convince Dvalishvili that he was worthy of a shot at the 135-pound crown.

“Umar is a good fighter. It’s a big challenge, but he don’t earn it like the rest of us,” Dvalishvili told ESPN. “We all know we work hard to get here, I don’t get anything easy, but somehow gets easy. He just complains all the time that nobody wants to fight him, but there are so many good fighters. There’s (Mario) Bautista, there are other fighters that are killers.

“But yeah, he fought only (Cory) Sandhagen (with) no wrestling, and he’s using that excuse that he beat the No. 2 guy, and now he’s here. It’s a big challenge, but the only thing I hate is that he don’t earn it how UFC fighters should earn it, and he’s just cocky. He should be humble at least, and he just disrespects me and lying, and that’s not what real men should do. That’s it.”

Merab Dvalishvili knows he’s in for a tough test against Umar Nurmagomedov

Dvalishvili may not approve of the path Nurmagomedov has taken, but he can’t deny that the Dagestani is a highly skilled opponent who presents a tough challenge.

“The fight will be really tough and this is a big, big challenge for me because it’s a new face and yeah, he’s a good fighter,” Dvalishvili said. “He’s good at kicking, striking, wrestling, and it’s a new challenge.”

It will be Dvalishvili’s first time defending the bantamweight title since taking it off ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley at UFC 306 in September.