Merab Dvalishvili and Umar Nurmagomedov have entered a heated rivalry with the Dagestani fighter aiming at the Georgian’s championship title. ‘The Machine’ repeatedly claimed Nurmagomedov wasn’t the one deserving a title shot. But it seemed like Dana White and Co. had made up their minds. With less than 2 weeks left for the showdown against Nurmagomedov, the Georgian champ faced one of the most heartbreaking betrayals.

The betrayal revolved around Magdi Amachov, a fellow mixed martial artist whom Dvalishvili helped during his difficult times. But as the date for UFC 311 inched closer, ‘The Machine’ was taken aback with visuals of Amachov helping Nurmagomedov prepare for his first-ever UFC title shot. Before we get to the betrayal, let’s take a look at who exactly is Amachov.

Who is Magdi Amachov? 

Amachov is an amateur bantamweight mixed martial artist hailing from Dagestan, Russia. He has yet to open his account as a professional MMA athlete. Having fought 3 amateur MMA bouts, the Dagestani fighter has won 2. The first win came against Ethan Morales at World Fighting Championships 166 via a unanimous decision. He then shifted to Tuff-N-Uff in May 2024 and won via a unanimous decision. His last fight against Tracy Love, however, resulted in a loss by split decision. 

The one thing that has impressed the fighting community about Amachov is that he fought thrice in 2024. Well, the 23-year-old Dagestani prospect has earned a blue belt in Jiu-Jitsu. Needless to say, with BJJ in his arsenal, along with Dagestani wrestling in his blood, Amachov has dominated the grappling arena, as well. According to SmoothComp, he has won 3 of his grappling bouts by points, 1 by submission, and faced defeat in 1 of his fights. 

Although Amachov’s journey as a mixed martial artist began in the mountains of Dagestan, he had to step into Houston, Texas, to begin his amateur fights. No doubt, he was pretty broke when he came to the USA. But thanks to Merab Dvalishvili, Amachov found a place to stay for free. Yes, ‘The Machine’ housed the homeless Dagestani, and gave him a room in his own house. This is indeed the reason why Amachov’s Instagram profile is filled with his pictures with Dvalishvili. 

If he’s so close to the bantamweight champion, why did Amachov help Umar Nurmagomedov prepare for his fight against ‘The Machine’? The Georgian football star, Giorgi Kokiashvili took to social media to announce that it was nothing but a sad betrayal. Let’s take a look at what Amachov had to say about it.

Why did Magdi Amachov help Umar Nurmagomedov instead of Merab Dvalishvili?

On the 4th of January, Amachov took to Instagram and shared a picture of ‘The Machine’ standing beside Nurmagomedov. He specified that it was a picture taken on 20 February 2024. It did seem like it was a picture before their relationship turned ugly, leading to a fight in the Octagon. As per Amachov, it’s a fight between 2 equal fighters. But when it came to the honor of his country, he simply couldn’t stand back and not help Nurmagomedov. In the caption, he revealed, “@umar_nurmagomedov my countryman and brother in faith. Since the first day we met, we have developed a good brotherly relationship, as the older brother and the youngest.”

But that didn’t mean Amachov forgot everything that Dvalishvili did for him. He continued, “@merab.dvalishvili for me is a close friend who extended a helping hand during a difficult period for me, and I will always remain grateful to him.” Despite helping Nurmagomedov train, Amachov wished both of his friends the best. After all, he knew both of them from a pretty good perspective. 

However, he had one wish for UFC 311. He didn’t want any of his friends to get injured. Amachov wrote, “The main thing is no injuries. Got you a hug 👊.” But that is something that only time will reveal. Do you think Amachov did the right thing by helping Nurmagomedov instead of Dvalishvili? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.