INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Merab Dvalishvili had already beaten four consecutive champions going into his first UFC title defense this year — and yet, Saturday still might have been the most impressive night of his career.
Dvalishvili (19-4) defended his bantamweight championship for the first time in the co-main event of UFC 311 inside the Intuit Dome, defeating the previously undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov (18-1) via unanimous decision. All three judges scored the bout for Dvalishvili, with official scores of 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47.
Nurmagomedov, the younger cousin of retired Hall of Famer Khabib, went into Saturday’s contest a significant betting favorite, but Dvalishvili promised to “humble” him in their five-round fight. According to UFC Stats, he outlanded Nurmagomedov in total strikes 133-81 and surpassed longtime welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre‘s as the all-time leader for career takedowns inside the Octagon.
“Umar is tough fighter and he’s good, but he called me old,” said Dvalishvili, who at 34 is five years older than Nurmagomedov. “Yes, I’m old but I’m working every day. I’m a harder worker.”
He added: “I’m so proud of myself. I can retire today, and I can die happy.”
It was a competitive fight, particularly early on, but as always, Dvalishvili’s pace proved to be his best weapon. He fell behind in the opening two rounds and suffered an early cut near his left eye. His volume started to wear on Nurmagomedov by the third round, however, and he sealed his victory in the final minute with a clean right hand and two successful takedowns.
Nurmagomedov, who was cornered by Khabib, admitted in his postfight comments he suffered a hand injury in the opening round. Although he has a much more striking-based style than his famous cousin, he is still known for his camp’s smothering grappling. He struggled to get anything going in that department against Dvalishvili, however, converting just 2 of 15 takedown attempts.
“I think first round, I won. Others was close,” Nurmagomedov said. “And after first round, I can’t punch because I think I broke my [left] hand, and game go other way, you know?”
In the buildup to the fight, Dvalishvili complained about Nurmagomedov’s fast track to a title fight. Nurmagomedov beat only one highly ranked opponent on his way to the title fight, compared with Dvalishvili’s road that included bouts against José Aldo, Petr Yan, Henry Cejudo and Sean O’Malley. Ultimately, Dvalishvili’s experience in elite five-round fights might have been the difference, as he dominated Nurmagomedov late.
Dvalishvili won the belt by defeating O’Malley at UFC Noche in September. O’Malley has since undergone and recovered from hip surgery, and expectations were he would likely fight the winner of Saturday’s contest. O’Malley sat cageside for the event.
