Bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili captured the 135-pound title by defeating Sean O’Malley in September 2024. He is defended the belt 3 times this 12 months and can put it on line for a fourth time in 2025 this weekend within the UFC 323 principal occasion.
Dvalishvili faces former champion Petr Yan in a rematch at T-Cellular Enviornment in Las Vegas on Saturday. The 2 first fought at UFC Combat Night time 221 in March 2023. Dvalishvili defeated Yan that evening in Las Vegas by way of unanimous resolution. It was the final time Yan misplaced a combat. Former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker believes Dvalishvili will choose up a second win over the Russian.
“Clearly, he is (Dvalishvili) a wrestler. His wrestling sport is simply so sturdy and he makes use of that to such devastating impact. He is solely getting higher in my eyes,” Whittaker informed FOX Sports activities Australia concerning the champion.
“Everybody can attest, his weak spot is his standup, however during the last 5 fights, I need to say, his standup has gotten considerably higher. And I believe him having to face with the caliber of striker he has been has simply compelled him to climb to a brand new degree of like putting defensiveness, putting security, but additionally offensively putting as soon as he is established the specter of the takedown,” continued Whittaker.
“It’s so good to see. Bar a puncher’s probability, I simply do not see the place a weak spot of his is true now.”
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“There’s all the time a puncher’s probability in each combat,” Whittaker added. “It might occur. It might occur in any combat towards anybody. Let’s take that tidbit out of the equation. I do not see it going any totally different (than the primary combat). I believe he is gotten defensively extra sound along with his putting. I believe he is rather more snug putting and mixing within the takedowns… I simply do not see the place the avenue for victory lies for Petr Yan.”
Merab Dvalishvili might make historical past at UFC 323
If Dvalishvili is profitable on Saturday, he’ll be the one champion in UFC historical past to defend their title 4 instances in a calendar 12 months. When he defeated Cory Sandhagen final month he joined a listing of seven different earlier champions who’ve defended their championships 3 times in a 12 months: Frank Shamrock, Tito Ortiz, Matt Hughes, Chuck Liddell, Demetrious Johnson, Kamaru Usman, and Alex Pereira.
“It’s wild, and you may type of see it as a result of his type would not lend itself to taking a whole lot of injury, so the flexibility to get again in there and get again to work. In addition to like his combat type, and I believe everybody can agree, it seems like he by no means stops,” Whittaker mentioned. “Like, I am fairly positive the following day he is out working, out jogging, doing one thing loopy like that.”
