Merab Dvalishvili (born January 10, 1991) is a

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

professional

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

. He currently competes in the

Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class is derived from Ba ...

division in the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

(UFC). As of March 13, 2023, he is #1 in the UFC bantamweight rankings.

Background

Dvalishvili grew up in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

, Georgia. He started training in qartuli chidaoba (traditional wrestling) and

khridoli Khridoli ( ka, ხრიდოლი) is an eclectic martial art from Georgia. It consists of five components, namely ''khardiorda'' (wrestling), ''krivi'' (boxing), ''p'arikaoba'' (fencing), ''rkena'' (throws and grabs also seen in Sambo and judo ...

(transitional fighting),

Sambo , aka = Sombo (in English-speaking countries) , focus = Hybrid , country = Soviet Union , pioneers = Viktor Spiridonov, Vasili Oshchepkov, Anatoly Kharlampiev , famous_pract = List of Practitioners , oly ...

and

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponi ...

when he was young for self-defense and moved to the United States when he was 21 years old to become a professional MMA fighter. He trains under

Ray Longo Ray Longo is a mixed martial arts (MMA) coach, a stunt man and actor. Considered one of the top coaches in MMA, he is the Head coach of the Serra-Longo fight team. He has trained and cornered three UFC Champions: Matt Serra, Chris Weidman, and A ...

and

Matt Serra Matthew John Serra (born June 2, 1974) is an American former professional mixed martial artist and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner who competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is the co-star of Dana White: Lookin' for a Fight and co- ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Dvalishvili started his MMA career in 2014 and fought under various promotions namely the Ring of Combat. He amassed a record of 7–2 prior to competing in the

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Dvalishvili made his UFC debut on December 9, 2017, against

Frankie Saenz Frankie Ozuna Saenz III (born August 12, 1980) is an American mixed martial artist in the bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional since 2009, he made a name for himself fighting mostly in his native state, where ...

at UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Ortega. He lost the fight via split decision. His next fight came on April 21, 2018, at UFC Fight Night: Barboza vs. Lee against

Ricky Simón Ricky Simón (born August 31, 1992) is an American mixed martial artist. He was the former Legacy Fighting Alliance Bantamweight Champion and currently competing in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of Dec ...

. He lost the fight via technical submission at the final bell. This fight earned him the ''Fight of the Night'' award. Dvalishvili's team appealed the result on the grounds that he was not unconscious at the end of the round, but the appeal was denied. Dvalishvili faced Terrion Ware on September 15, 2018, at UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Oleinik. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Dvalishvili faced

Brad Katona Brad Devin Katona (born December 12, 1991) is a Canadian mixed martial artist and the reigning Brave CF Bantamweight Champion. Katona formerly competed in the UFC and was the featherweight winner of '' The Ultimate Fighter 27''. Personal life ...

on May 4, 2019, at UFC Fight Night: Iaquinta vs. Cowboy. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Dvalishvili faced

Casey Kenney Casey James Kenney (born March 20, 1991) is an American mixed martial artist. He is currently competing in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and he was the former Tachi Palace Fights Flyweight champion and L ...

on February 15, 2020, at

UFC Fight Night 167 The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

. He won the fight by unanimous decision. Dvalishvili was scheduled to face Ray Borg on June 13, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Eye vs. Calvillo. However, on June 11, 2020, it was reported that Borg withdrew from the bout and he was replaced by promotional newcomer Gustavo Lopez in a catchweight bout of 140 pounds. Dvalishvili was victorious via unanimous decision. Dvalishvili faced John Dodson on August 15, 2020, at

UFC 252 ''UFC 252: Miocic vs. Cormier 3'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on August 15, 2020 at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area, United Sta ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Dvalishvili was expected to face

Cody Stamann Cody James Stamann (born November 9, 1989) is an American mixed martial artist and currently competing in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Stamann was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan and attended Grand ...

on December 5, 2020, at

UFC on ESPN 19 ''UFC on ESPN: Hermansson vs. Vettori'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 19'' and ''UFC Vegas 16'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on December 5, 2020 at the UFC Apex facility in Enter ...

. However on October 22, it was announced that Stamann pulled out due to undisclosed reasons, and he was replaced by

Raoni Barcelos Raoni Mendonça Barcelos (born May 1, 1987) is a Brazilian former amateur wrestler and grappler, and current professional mixed martial artist. He was five-times Brazilian national wrestling champion, and three-time Resurrection Fighting Allianc ...

. However, Barcelos was removed from the contest due to a medical suspension related to his latest bout on

November 7 Events Pre-1600 * 335 – Athanasius is banished to Trier, on the charge that he prevented a grain fleet from sailing to Constantinople. * 680 – The Sixth Ecumenical Council commences in Constantinople. * 921 – Treaty of Bon ...

. The bout between Dvalishvili and Stamann was reschedule for

UFC Fight Night 184 ''UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Volkov'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 184'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 42'' and ''UFC Vegas 18'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on February 6, 2021 at the UF ...

on February 6, 2021. In turn, in mid January, Dvalishvili was forced to pull out from the bout due to the struggle of the after-effects of a COVID-19 complication, and he was replaced by

Andre Ewell Andre Eugene Ewell (born January 21, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist. He competed in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He also competed for Classic Entertainment and Sports (CES MMA) and is a former ...

. After a positive test for COVID-19, Ewell was pulled from the event and replaced by promotional newcomer Askar Askar, with the contest expected to take place at featherweight. On the day of the event, Askar was not medically cleared and the bout was cancelled. The bout between Dvalishvili and Stamann was re-scheduled again to May 1, 2021, at UFC on ESPN: Reyes vs. Procházka. Dvalishvili won the bout via unanimous decision. Dvalishvili faced

Marlon Moraes Marlon Luiz Moraes (born April 26, 1988) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Featherweight division of the Professional Fighters League (PFL). He previously competed in the bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Champi ...

on September 25, 2021, at

UFC 266 ''UFC 266: Volkanovski vs. Ortega'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on September 25, 2021 at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area, United S ...

. After being knocked down and nearly finished in the first round, Dvalishvili rallied and won the fight via TKO in round two. This win earned him the ''

Performance of the Night UFC Bonus Awards are three separate cash bonuses usually awarded to four fighters after each UFC event, based on internal decisions by UFC management. More/fewer bonuses have been awarded at some events, especially when no knockouts or submissions ...

'' award. Dvalishvili faced former

UFC Featherweight champion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...

José Aldo José Aldo da Silva Oliveira Júniorhttps://pbs.twimg.com/media/CI3oOc0VAAAr_iv.jpg (, born 9 September 1986), commonly anglicized as Jose Aldo, is a retired Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He last competed in the Ultimate Fight ...

on August 20, 2022, at

UFC 278 ''UFC 278: Usman vs. Edwards 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on August 20, 2022, at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Background The event marked the promotion' ...

. He won the bout via unanimous decision. Dvalishvili faced

Petr Yan Petr Evgenyevich Yan (russian: Пётр Евге́ньевич Я́н, translit=Pyotr Yevgenyevich Yan; born 11 February 1993) is a Russian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fi ...

on March 11, 2023 at UFC Fight Night: Yan vs. Dvalishvili. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Dvalishvili broke the UFC record for most takedowns attempted in a bout in UFC history with 49 attempts.

Professional grappling career

In 2019, Dvalishvili finished second in the Sambo World Championships in South Korea. Dvalishvili competed in combat sambo at 68 kilograms and lost in the finals to Russia's Stepan Kobenov. Dvalishvili fought in the main event of Fury Pro Grappling 2 on October 29, 2021, and lost a unanimous decision to Kevin Dantzler. Dvalishvili was booked to compete against Darren Branch in the main event of High Rollerz 23 on January 21, 2023. He won the match by submission, with a choke from kesa-gatame.

Championships and accomplishments

(One time) ** Fight of the Night (One time) ** Most unanimous decision wins in UFC Bantamweight division history (7) **Tied (

Aljamain Sterling Aljamain Antoine Sterlinghttp://boxing.nv.gov/uploadedFiles/boxingnvgov/content/results/2014_Results/02-22-14MMA.pdf (born July 31, 1989) is a Jamaican-American mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Bantamweight division in the Ul ...

) for the longest win streak in UFC Bantamweight division history (8) ** Most takedowns landed in UFC Bantamweight division history (61) **Most significant strikes landed in UFC Bantamweight division history (1569) **Tied (

Demetrious Johnson Demetrious Johnson (born August 13, 1986) is an American mixed martial artist. He currently competes in ONE Championship, where he is the current ONE Flyweight Champion (135 lb). He is the inaugural and former UFC Flyweight Champion. Known fo ...

) for fourth most takedowns landed in UFC history (74) **Most takedowns attempted in a bout in UFC history (49 vs

) *Ring of Combat **ROC Bantamweight Championship (One Time) ***One successful title defense

Mixed martial arts record

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Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

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Salt Lake City, Utah Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

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Raufeon Stots Raufeon Stots (born December 16, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist and graduated collegiate wrestler currently competing in the bantamweight division of Bellator MMA, where he is the current Interim Bellator Bantamweight Champion. As a ...

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Tony Gravely Tony Gravely (born September 28, 1991) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Gravely's father was a Tae Kwon Do instructor for over 25 years, so he started ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dvalishvili, Merab Living people 1991 births Sportspeople from Tbilisi Male judoka from Georgia (country) Male mixed martial artists from Georgia (country) Sambo practitioners from Georgia (country) Bantamweight mixed martial artists Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Mixed martial artists utilizing sambo Mixed martial artists utilizing judo