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 yr 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 Area in Las Vegas on Saturday. The 2 first fought at UFC Battle Evening 221 in March 2023. Dvalishvili defeated Yan that night time in Las Vegas through unanimous determination. It was the final time Yan misplaced a battle. Former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker believes Dvalishvili will choose up a second win over the Russian.
“Clearly, he is (Dvalishvili) a wrestler. His wrestling recreation 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 in regards to the champion.
“Everybody can attest, his weak point is his standup, however during the last 5 fights, I wish 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 stage of like putting defensiveness, putting security, but in addition 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 likelihood, I simply do not see the place a weak point of his is correct now.”
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“There’s at all times a puncher’s likelihood in each battle,” Whittaker added. “It may occur. It may occur in any battle in opposition to anybody. Let’s take that tidbit out of the equation. I do not see it going any completely different (than the primary battle). I believe he is gotten defensively extra sound together 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 may 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 yr. 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 yr: 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 model 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 battle model, and I believe everybody can agree, it appears like he by no means stops,” Whittaker mentioned. “Like, I am fairly positive the subsequent day he is out working, out jogging, doing one thing loopy like that.”
