Merab Dvalishvili Aka ‘The Machine,’ often has had a layer of mystery about himself. We might know about this bantamweight fighter who has a 17-4-0 but who is Merab Dvalishvili apart from being a UFC star? He does have social media but it lacks crucial details about his life. But hold on, we do have some information about him.

Let’s see all about his nationality, where he was born, and whether he has two citizenship! You might find some unique information you did not know before so dive in!

Where is Merab Dvalishvili from? His primary nationality

The professional Georgian mixed martial artist was born on January 10, 1991. The 33-year-old was born in Tbilisi, Georgia and currently competes in the bantamweight category of UFC and has the second rank in the official charts. He is a Georgian national but decided to move to the US when he was 21 so that he could train in martial arts with the best trainers. Under the guidance of coaches Ray Longo and Matt Serra, Dvalishvili sharpened his skills and entered the MMA scene.

As for his ethnicity, he belongs to the Caucasian ethnic group native to Georgia and the South Caucasus. He has also spent most of his life as an Eastern Orthodox Christian attending the Georgian orthodox church. He had started training in the traditional quartile Chidaoba and Khridoli before coming to Combat Sambo and Judo. Born as a Soviet citizen, he later became a Georgian citizen after the USSR disintegrated in his birth year.

After training in the US, he debuted as a mixed martial artist in 2014. Unfortunately, he had lost his debut fight in the Ring of  Combat  47. Dvalishvili went on to fight for CFFC and lost his first bout in the promotion. However, he did not stop working hard and finally achieved six consecutive victories in  CES MMA and ROC. He has had victories over strong contenders like strong names like Jose Aldo and Henry Cejudo at the UFC.

Now, as mentioned above, he moved to the US when he was 21. So you must be wondering whether he has US citizenship after so many years.

Merab Dvalishvili acquires US citizenship: Is he a dual citizen?

‘The Machine’ has been living on US soil for a decade now and has moved to train in mixed martial arts. Interestingly, the bantamweight fighter loves both Georgia and America and has carried the flags of both countries on many occasions inside the octagon. He shows appreciation for his homeland and also the land that fulfilled his dreams.

Now there is an update and this year in 2024 ‘The Machine’ finally became an American citizen as well. After living almost for 12 years in the country, he has acquired American citizenship as was reported by the fighter through his own Instagram. He declared that after living for almost dedicating the country, he had the qualifications to become a citizen. The bantamweight noted that his “heart will always be in Georgia,” but he is “grateful” for the opportunities that the United States has given him in his career.

He currently resides in New York and Las Vegas, training with both the Serra Longo Fight Team and Syndicate MMA. After the fight uploaded this information, even Jorge Masvidal congratulated him for becoming a part of the ‘ best country in the world.’

So does this mean that when he comes back for UFC 306 he is going to carry both the flags of Georgia and America?

Which flag will Merab Dvalishvili carry at UFC 306?

He even officially said that he became a citizen in an interview with Kevin Iole and the host congratulated him on becoming a citizen of America. The veteran journalist asked him what it meant for him to become a dual citizen of Georgia and America.

‘The Machine’, who started training in combat sports in his motherland and then nourished his skills in America answered that he was grateful that this country gave him the opportunities that he has now. He said, “ I’m grateful to be here in the US. This is a beautiful country, a free country. I think I have an example of the American dream. If you come here you work hard and if you are a good citizen, and if you do not do any criminal or bad things, then you will become successful.”

He also jokingly said that since now he has a US passport, he can clap back at his haters who had bullied him earlier. Even if he did clap back at his heaters, he would not be deported now since he was a citizen of America!

It seems like he might just carry both the flags at UFC Noche! All we have to do is the live event to know what happens!