It's no secret that UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili hasn't been on the list of fighters that Dana White favors. It all started when Dvalishvili said he wouldn't fight teammate and friend, then-champion Aljamain Sterling. White's annoynce grew after Dvalishvili was caught on video acting out against fans and revealing injuries on social media.
But, according to Dvalishvili, White defended him when a video surfaced of he and Sterling's teammates getting into a fight with someone in the crowd at UFC 310.
“He defended me,” Dvalishvili told MMA Fighting. “Before the media always ask him like weird question about me, ‘How about Merab? [What] about him doing this?’ Why is media asking? They only do because Dana [can] answer in like a bad way, and that’s what he was doing. But this time, he defended me. The media again, ‘Merab is scared of Umar [Nurmagomedov].’ Bro, Dana knows that I’m not scared. I always say yes every time they mention his name, I say yes, and Dana [says it’s] true."
Dvalishvili also explained the backstory behind the viral moment and why he and Sterling's team were provoked by his upcoming opponent's friend.
“Yeah, so Umar’s friend tried to [provoke] me and then do something bad for me, and make me look bad. I’m a professional fighter. I love people. Usually when I walk through the crowd, I give everybody love, support, and I’m happy, you know. But this guy, he was recording me like this [with his phone out], I thought he was a friend and he was talking to me, and I go close to him. I was smiling. He was talking in Russian language and I know the bad words. We all know all the bad words, and then I wanted to fight the guy, but security jumped in. This guy provoked me."
Dvalishvili and Nurmagomedov will fight for the 135-pound title in the co-main event at UFC 311.