Los Angeles — “They give me only seven days suspension, so I can fight next week, no problem,” Merab Dvalishvili joked following a stunning performance against the previously undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov in Saturday’s UFC 311 co-main event.
Dvalishvili (19-4) displayed cardio second to none in the fight, and at the end of five rounds, he’d left Nurmagomedov in the dust. He also surpassed Georges St-Pierre’s UFC takedown record.
Umar, cousin of UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov, started strong. “I was taking my time, nothing too rushed. I was there for a fight, like I said, I wasn’t looking for wrestling. I wanted to punch the guy’s face in,” Dvalishvili said in response. “I was looking for a good opportunity to punch. That’s what I was trying.”
The bantamweight champ noted that he wakes up more in the later rounds, adding “I can even go ten rounds.” He also pointed out that Nurmagomedov had called him “old” in advance of the fight. “Bro, look at him. Yes, maybe I’m older than you, but I have experience, I’m training hard. What are you talking about? We just have to get rid of the old people?”
The bad blood that boiled over ahead of Dvalishvili vs. Nurmagomedov was uncharacteristic of the usually upbeat Merab Dvalishvili. That changed during the fight itself: Dvalishvili played to the crowd, and at one point, entered into a lengthy conversation with the UFC broadcast team, seated cageside, while defending a takedown.
“I like to have fun. I don’t like negative energy. Sometimes even when I fight, I’m still looking for something positive. I don’t hate nobody,” Dvalishvili stated. “I think it was more fun, right? I had some conversations with people, that was fun. That feels good, when you break some undefeated guy and you can laugh with people, you can have a conversation.”
What’s next for Merab Dvalishvili could get interesting. “The Machine” has won 12 straight fights, defeating names including Nurmagomedov, Petr Yan, Jose Aldo, Sean O’Malley, and Henry Cejudo. That’s arguably one of the nastiest murder’s row of opponents possible. So who’s left?
“I think I beat everybody in this division, but we’ll see. Whoever is the next best challenger,” Dvalishvili replied, asked about possible opponents. “And I think also [Sean] O’Malley, he was complaining about something, and he really has a chance. We know he can really knock people out, if he lands on you he has a big chance. I see him as a challenge too. Maybe he will make some changes now, maybe we will go toe-to-toe this time, and it’s going to be a good fight I think.”
While Umar Nurmagomedov revealed he’d broken his hand in the fight, Dvalishvili dismissed the excuse, suggesting it’s all part of the fight game.
“I break my back during the training camp, and it was some days I cannot get up from the bed, I was laid down, I don’t have a training camp and I don’t have a Khabib Nurmagomedov helping me to train.” Dvalishvili noted that many times over the holidays, he couldn’t access the UFC PI for treatment and training. “I’m not making this excuse. You’re a f*cking fighter, and you’ve got to find a way to win. Whatever, it maybe happened, maybe. I don’t know. After he disrespected me, he said so many bullsh*t things, as a fighter I respect him, God bless him, I wish him all the best but it’s a fight. And guess what, who broke his hand?”
Watch the full UFC 311 post-fight press conference with Merab Dvalishvili above.