Merab
Dvalishvili doesn’t want any fun and games with Umar
Nurmagomedov.
Dvalishvili was scheduled to wrestle Henry
Cejudo at RAF 8 last weekend. However, Cejudo was forced out
due to an injury just hours before the bout. Dvalishvili was later
asked if he would be interested in a wrestling match against former
opponent Umar
Nurmagomedov. However, Dvalishvili shut down the idea, citing
the beef between them.
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Dvalishvili explains that while his job is fighting in MMA,
wrestling matches are fun to him. However, Dvalishvili doesn’t want
to do anything for fun with Nurmagomedov as he feels disrespected
by the Dagestani.
No Fun Allowed
“I don’t like this guy, because he disrespect me,” Dvalishvili
told Adam Zubayraev. “My job is to fight.
Whoever the
UFC gives me, I will fight. UFC gives me [Umar], I will fight.
Wrestling is for fun. I’ll never do fun matchup against this guy.
Because it’s not fun for me, it’s real.”
Dvalishvili’s (21-5) beef with Nurmagomedov (20-1) started
following his bantamweight title win over Sean O’Malley in 2024.
The then-unbeaten Nurmagomedov immediately started calling for a
title shot against Dvalishvili. Dvalishvili kept turning down
Nurmagomedov, saying the Dagestani was receiving favors because of
his cousin, the legendary Khabib
Nurmagomedov. However, Dvalishvili eventually accepted the
matchup and successfully defended his title, handing Nurmagomedov
his lone professional defeat so far.
Dvalishvili has always accused Nurmagomedov of disrespecting him.
However, “The Machine” openly expresses his respect for
Nurmagomedov’s teammates, Khabib and Islam
Makhachev. The reason behind Dvalishvili’s grouse against
Nurmagomedov remains slightly unclear, as the Dagestani barely
trash-talked, barring the occasional ducking accusations.