Merab Dvalishvili has one top UFC bantamweight contender knocking on his door.
Dvalishvili is the reigning 135-pound champion, who is fresh off a successful title defense against Umar Nurmagomedov. Dvalishvili and Nurmagomedov collided in the co-main event of UFC 311. The Georgian champion was able to retain his gold thanks to some elite conditioning and grappling.
While Dvalishvili’s impressive showing was eye-opening, it won’t deter one hungry challenger.
Cory Sandhagen Thinks He Can Give Merab Dvalishvili Problems
In a new video posted on his YouTube channel, Cory Sandhagen discussed what type of fighting style can potentially thwart Merab Dvalishvili.
“Styles make fights,” Sandhagen said. “I think that if you’re gonna be a guy that fights against Merab, you have to have really, really, really good footwork and be able to defend the takedowns in an energy efficient way.”
Sandhagen’s most recent fight was a unanimous decision loss to Umar Nurmagomedov. While Sandhagen isn’t banking on getting a title shot next, he does believe he can crack the code of Merab Dvalishvili .
“I don’t think that I should get a title shot off of an immediate loss, but I do think that if there is a style that beats Merab it’s one that can control the space the best. Say whatever you want about my style, what you have to say about it is that I probably have the best footwork in the division, and if not the best, like, way, way up there. I hold space, keep space, close it, open it better than anyone else in the division, in my opinion.”
Two names in the bantamweight division that may have their number called for a clash with Dvalishvili are Sean O’Malley and Petr Yan. O’Malley lost the bantamweight title against Dvalishvili back in September 2024, and UFC CEO Dana White told reporters that a rematch between the two is a possibility. As for Yan, he’s someone who Dvalishvili has lobbied to fight in the past. Yan has won his last two fights over Deiveson Figueiredo and Song Yadong.