Not only does UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili not want to fight Umar Nurmagomedov next, but he thinks it is disrespectful for the Dagestani to even talk about it. ‘The Machine’ of course, thinks that the #1 ranked Nurmagomedov is only in the position he is today because of his last name, which he shares with his more illustrious cousin, Khabib.

And the Georgian champ has advised ‘Young Eagle’, who “just got here”, to pipe down and wait for his title shot. But in recent times, ‘company man’ Dvalishvili has changed his tune, and acquired, clearly reluctantly, to fight the Dagestani. Umar thinks this change of heart is because the champ’s tantrums about fighting him were making Merab look un-champion-like.

“Right now he [Merab] is the champion and everybody push him, you know, everybody push him [for a fight with me]. But he looked very bad when like Joe Rogan or some interviewers asked him about me, and he goes away he say he can’t talk [about it] he beginning [with saying] ‘Ah uh ah, you know, I love Dana,’ you know. It’s making looking very bad, he have to talk like a champion he has to be a champion, he has to [at least make it seem like he] know he can beat everybody right now,” Umar told TMZ Sports in an interview.

This change of heart may also have something to do with Nurmagomedov confirming recently that Dana White and co. have promised him he is next in line to fight for the title. And the champ, it seems has read the writing on the wall- all roads lead to the Dagestani. But since the whole Merab-Umar verbal scuffle has broken out, there is one question many fans have been wondering about.

Has Umar Nurmagomedov gotten special treatment from Dana White and Co.?

The answer to whether Umar Nurmagomedov has been fast-tracked by the UFC because he is Khabib’s cousin is a mixed bag of opinions. On one side, this argument holds weight because the UFC certainly gave the Dagestani a leg-up because of his name recognition and newsworthiness. To be fair the UFC is known to do so with fighters it thinks have high star potential, Sean O’Malley being the most recent example. And the fact that Umar went from being ranked #10 to fighting #1 ranked Cory Sandhagen, leapfrogging the entire Top 10, does point to some ‘Dana White privilege’ at work.

On the other hand, the fact is that Nurmagomedov did dominate Sandhagen, clearly showing he was good enough to be the top-ranked bantamweight in the UFC. In addition, it is worth noting that the UFC cut Abubakar Nurmagomedov, another one of Khabib’s cousins, earlier this year, because of his mundane UFC record.

Of course, Umar has also accused Merab of being ‘scared’ to face him. But if there is one thing the champ has shown in his time at the UFC, it is that he is always up for a fight for anyone, anytime. After all, he is not called ‘The Machine’ for nothing. As Umar will find out if and when he faces Merab and tries to back up his trash talk against the nigh unstoppable Georgian. What are your thoughts on Umar Nurmagomedov’s comments about Merab Dvalishvili? Will be eventually see the two of them going all in for the belt? Drop your views below!