As he steps into the Octagon this Saturday, UFC sensation Merab Dvalishvili will aim to bolster his case for a title shot, riding an impressive 8-fight winning streak.
Squaring off against Petr Yan, the bantamweight fighter is vocal about his dislike for his opponent. The same was palpable when both fighters got into a scuffle recently. While the Georgian fighter had a disastrous start to his UFC career with two losses on the trout, he turned his fortunes around and now finds himself in title contention. Also, racking up wins against prominent names such as Marlon Moraes and his latest victory against Jose Aldo boosted his credentials. As a result, ‘The Machine’ found himself an admirer in UFC star Conor McGregor when both fighters crossed paths at the UFC Performance Institute.
Notably, the Irishman visited the UFC Performance Institute, where the 32-year-old fighter was training for his fight at UFC Fight Night 221 on March 11. Further, the #3 ranked bantamweight motivated the Irishman to have a warm-up session with him. Impressed by the skills of the Tbilisi native, the former UFC champion wished him luck for the weekend bout against ‘No Mercy’ at The Theater at Virgin Hotels.
Conor McGregor wishes Dvalishvili luck ahead of his fight against Petr Yan
The 34-year-old, who is currently engaged in the shooting of the 31st season of The Ultimate Fighter, took to Instagram as he shared the message.
Markedly, he shared the visuals from their brief ring exchange. Further, praising the 15-4 record holder, he wrote, “Deadly little Georgian fighter this guy @merab.dvalishvili.”
“Good luck this weekend,” he added later on.
The two opponents share a complicated history going into the fight this weekend. Multiple reasons plagued the rivalry, as revealed by Dvalishvili in the pre-fight press conference on Wednesday.
Dvalishvili reveals the rivalry against Yan is personal
The Serra-Longo Fight Team representative mentioned the fight was not a mere fight for him. It was a personal affair.
Expanding on the same later on, he detailed the historical and political tensions surrounding his country and Yan‘s home country. Thus, he declared, “I know I want to win for my people. I have so much support from my country and so much support from Ukraine, too.”
Afterward, the bantamweight fighter listed the qualities of the Russian fighter. However, he also believed Yan was neither a humble guy nor a great human.
What do you think of this message shared by the former UFC champion Conor McGregor? Do you believe Dvalishvili will triumph over the Russian fighter? Let us know in the comments below.
