Merab Dvalishvili’s teammate foresees another statement-making performance.
The Georgian will make history when he enters the Octagon at UFC 323, as the reigning bantamweight champion makes a record-breaking fourth title defense of this calendar year.
After getting past Umar Nurmagomedov, Sean O’Malley, and Cory Sandhagen, Dvalishvili will face Petr Yan in a rematch of their UFC Fight Night main event in 2023, which ‘The Machine’ comfortably won.
Dvalishvili has already established himself as a leading contender for bantamweight GOAT status, and another of the division’s best ever expects him to further cement his grip on that crown with a rare result on December 6.
Is Merab Dvalishvili the greatest bantamweight of all time?
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Aljamain Sterling is backing Merab Dvalishvili to knock out Petr Yan at UFC 323
The bantamweight king has just one finish in his last seven fights. Dvalishvili submitted O’Malley at UFC 316 to break a streak of decisions, before needing the scorecards again to spoil Sandhagen’s title hopes.
Despite that trend, however, Aljamain Sterling is predicting Dvalishvili to get his first knockout since 2021.
“I am picking Merab to get a finish,” Sterling said on The Weekly Scraps podcast.
“I could see it happening possibly in the third or fourth round…TKO.
“That would be insane,” he continued. “I think Yan is hard to submit. I had that guy’s neck and I was being smart (and couldn’t submit him).
“Whatever happens, win or lose, (Dvalishvili) is officially the bantamweight GOAT.”
Dvalishvili beat Marlon Moraes via TKO at UFC 266 in September 2021. That result came after the Georgian star escaped an early scare and mounted a memorable comeback.
Merab Dvalishvili is clearing out the UFC bantamweight division
Dvalishvili is quickly running out of fresh contenders in the 135-pound division.
The Georgian already began lapping the top contenders when he recorded a second win over O’Malley this past June. Should he get past Yan for a second time at UFC 323, yet another rematch could await ‘The Machine’.
Nurmagomedov is pursuing a second shot at the belt and hopes to secure it by defeating Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 324 early next year.
Who’s the biggest threat to Merab Dvalishvili?
UFC bantamweight rankings:
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Dvalishvili beat Nurmagomedov at UFC 311 in January 2025, pulling away in the latter rounds of their five-round title showdown in Los Angeles.
In terms of new faces for the champ, both Aiemann Zahabi and Song Yadong are in the mix. While the Canadian is coming off a win over ex-title challenger Marlon Vera, the Chinese contender will fight O’Malley at UFC 324.