Georgian wrecking ball, Merab Dvalishvili did exactly what he set out to – beat his bitter rival Sean O’Malley at the biggest stage and capture his bantamweight gold at UFC Noche. However, undefeated contender Umar Nurmagomedov wasn’t too impressed with the win. In fact, following Dvalishvili’s win, the Dagestani exposed his apparent hypocrisy with a sharp Ilia Topuria dig.
After he dismantled ‘Suga’ mauling him over the course of five rounds, the Georgian was asked about facing Nurmagomedov in his first title defense, something he didn’t answer after going on a long winded chat about how much he loved Dana White.
But Merab’s idea of him facing undefeated bantamweight contender and former flyweight champion, Deiveson Figueiredo irked the Nurmagomedov even more, prompting him to come up with a quick and stiff response.
“When Merab’s friend, Topuria fought for the title, after 6 consecutive wins, and beating only one top 5 ranked opponent Josh Emmet, I don’t remember that Merab was desperately protesting against such ‘unfairness.’”
When Merab’s friend, Topuria fought for the title, after 6 consecutive wins, and beating only one top 5 ranked opponent Josh Emmet, I don’t remember that Merab was desperately protesting against such ‘unfairness’. 👀
— Umar Nurmagomedov (@UNmgdv) September 16, 2024
In his Merab‘s defense, Umar has only faced Cory Sandhagen in the top 15 and the main reason for not giving him a title shot is based on the fact that he only has one ranked win!
Meanwhile, the newly crowned champion is hell-bent on taking on the former champion, Deiveson Figueiredo, snubbing the Russian with a heavy hand despite the UFC President/CEO vouching for the Georgian vs Russian showdown.
Dvalshvili picks Figueiredo over Umar
UFC 306 saw both the women’s flyweight title and the bantamweight belt change hands after both the main & co-main event challengers outpaced the champions to win the belt.
After ‘The Machine’ left O’Malley, humiliated, dominating him with his signature pressure style wrestling, UFC commentator Joe Rogan was quick to question him on who would be his next opponent just as the camera cut to the 18-0 contender Umar.
The champion was seen as emotional to offer his thoughts and instead thanked Uncle Dana for the opportunity. However, he spoke his mind in the subsequent presser, naming Figueredo as his naming opponent, thwarting Umar with a heavy hand.
“Whoever they want, I will fight next, but I want to talk to Dana, I want to become his friend… I want to fight the top of the top, you know. I think Figueredo would be my fifth champion, he is more dangerous, knockout power, good Jiu-Jitsu makes people [go to] sleep. That’s why this fight excites me, gives me motivation, makes me work hard… Umar is okay but I’m telling you guys, from the top 15 he’s only won one fight.”
Is the champ ducking Umar or just enjoying the fruits of his hard work like everybody else? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
