UFC bantamweight fighter Merab Dvalishvili still has bad blood with Umar Nurmagomedov ahead of their upcoming bout.
Dvalishvili is set to have his title defense shortly after snagging the title from Sean O’Malley. The fighter is scheduled to face Dagestani fighter Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 311 in January. The fight seems to have built up some tension between the two fighters, as both have been at loggerheads since the bout was announced. The two had a heated conversation that almost led to a brawl at their weigh-in, and Dvalishvili recently got into a fight with a fan from Nurmagomedov’s camp at UFC 310.
In an interview with Ariel Helwani, Dvalishvili spoke about his feelings towards his opponent and said that Nurmagomedov should apologize for some of the words he said at their weigh-in.
“If you come to my face and if you disrespect me, you’re going to get slapped,” Dvalishvili said. “Don’t try that because I’m a man, and I will never forgive you, even if I have to go to jail. I don’t care, man. I have so much to lose.And I don’t care [about] this belt, I don’t care [about] this money, I don’t care [about] this legacy. I’m a man, I live in a respectful way, and that’s all I believe.
“Especially now I’m a U S. citizen, I can f***ing fight, beat the s*** out of these motherf***ers, and I have no problem paying the bill, ticket, or go to jail. Because I don’t care. Don’t disrespect me,” Dvalishvili continued. “He may get a slap after the fight. … The fight in the Octagon is not a real fight. It’s a sport. Yeah, [the fight will continue] if Umar does not apologize. … It’s going to happen. Even if I have to go in Dagestan, I will go.”
It is uncertain if Dvalishvili will deliver on that threat, but Dvalishvili’s frequent altercations with fans at events — the most recent of which happened just this past weekend at UFC 310 — suggests “The Machine” won’t hold back outside of the cage if he feels disrespected.
