Having now defeated his three closest challengers, what’s next for bantamweight champ Merab Dvalishvili?
Dvalishvili, who hasn’t lost since 2018, has defeated Umar Nurmagomedov and Sean O’Malley (twice) in the last nine months. He also beat current #3 Petr Yan in 2023. And while the Bantamweight champion has yet to lock horns with #4 Cory Sandhagen, it seems Dvalishvili’s next challenger could likely come from the top three again.
For O’Malley, it was a case of Groundhog Day in his rematch against Dvalishvili, with emphasis on the word ‘ground’. The defending champ dominated with his reliable combination of takedowns and grounded grappling. O’Malley was never able to build any momentum and ultimately succumbed to a north-south choke in round three.
While O’Malley tried to reset his lifestyle and approach ahead of the Dvalishvili rematch, he still didn’t learn from the mistakes of his first fight. This is an aspect that Nurmagomedov’s coach, Javier Mendez, feels his fighter can handle better, should he be granted a second shot to fight Dvalishvili.
“We’re different fighters,” started Mendez, speaking to his podcast co-host Mo Azizah. “We’re not the same. We have different game plans and different skill sets. Umar’s got different skill sets. We can definitely fight him. The Merab I’ve seen is not a Merab that we would be afraid of. We welcome the challenge because he is the best.
“If you want to be a champion, you got to be the best. So, he’s the best, so we want that. We don’t want someone that’s not the best. We want the tougher fights. The true champion fights the best… Unfortunately for us, we’re not going to get that fight after our next one or maybe even the next one after that. Who knows when we’re going to get another title shot.”
Mendez continues to be at the forefront of MMA coaching, having led the likes of Umar’s cousin, Khabib, Islam Makhachev, and Daniel Cormier to UFC titles. But even with his expertise, Mendez recognizes that the bantamweight division is incredibly competitive right now.
Mendez: Merab Dvalishvili rematch is off the table for Umar Nurmagomedov
While Umar Nurmagomedov remains the #2 in the bantamweight division behind O’Malley. His loss to Dvalishvili will have damaged his immediate chances for another title shot. As Mendez points out, those directly behind Nurmagomedov, Yan, and Sandhagen have made strong cases for title shots in recent months.
“You got Petr Yan out there, who looks very impressive, too. Then you got Cory Sandhagen. Those guys, they’re ahead of us. Unless we fight Petr Yan somewhere down the line. But Cory, we already fought him, so we doubt we would get that one again. Cory will probably get the shot at Merab before we do. Or maybe Petr gets it. They’re both justified in getting it,” added Mendez.
Yan has a strong case for a title shot following Nurmagomedov and O’Malley’s losses. Yan has a 2021 victory over Sandhagen to his name and has beaten the fourth and fifth-ranked fighters, Song Yadong and Deiveson Figueiredo, in his last two fights.
Sandhagen, meanwhile, has beaten four of the bantamweight top 10 in his last five fights, including Yadong and Figueiredo. Whoever gets that next shot at Dvalishvili, Yan or Sandhagen, expect the other to fight Nurmagomedov.
For Nurmagomedov and O’Malley, it becomes a case of trying to rebuild their stock. And when the opportunities arise in the form of Yan or Sandhagen, they need to take their chances if they want to lock up with Dvalishvili again in the future.
