It looks like the bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili has a penchant for fighting outside the Octagon. ‘Machine’ was in town for a press conference to promote his upcoming UFC 311 title defense against Umar Nurmagomedov. Prior to the press conference, the Georgian fighter tried to confront Nurmagomdov before security got in the way. While there, he also supported his teammate, Aljamain Sterling, during a tight decision loss to Movsar Evloev at UFC 310. After the event, new footage shared by Inside Fighting showed Merab Dvalishvili involved in another confrontation with a fan inside the T-Mobile Arena.

UFC CEO Dana White was pretty aware that something like this could happen. However, the 55-year-old warned ‘The Machine’ that he could end up in a lot of trouble if he keeps behaving like this. This is not the first time that the champion has been involved in a heated altercation with the fans. The UFC head honcho first addressed the precautions he took to prevent altercations between Dvalishvili and Nurmagomedov. He said, “We took Islam and we took Poirier – not Poirier [Tsarukyan], you know who the f..k I am talking about. I don’t but you do. We took them out, put them at the table, moved Merab over to the other side, had Umar and his crew over in the middle, and we still had problems.” 

However, White then issued a warning to the Georgian fighter and said, “I mean, I don’t know you can’t keep fighting with every fan. It’s gonna cost you a lot of money.” Merab Dvalishvili has been on edge since before the UFC 311 press conference. Fans speculate that the Georgian doesn’t want to face the Dagestani, and this seems to infuriate the bantamweight champion even more. But it seems that ‘The Machine’ may have pushed his fiery temper too far after Aljamain Sterling’s loss on the UFC 310 prelims.

Merab Dvalishvili will now be defending his title against Umar Nurmagomedov. The tension began when Nurmagomedov called for a title shot against Dvalishvili, who sparked the feud by claiming that Team Khabib isn’t truly Russian, but Dagestani. This comment led to a series of verbal exchanges, with Umar urging Dvalishvili to stop avoiding him and face him in the Octagon. However, things took a massive turn before their clash in a recent pre-fight press conference.

Umar Nurmagomedov and Merab Dvalishvili’s war of words

The UFC appears to be giving fans what they’ve been asking for, as this matchup has quickly become one of the most exciting in bantamweight history. With things nearly getting physical between the two backstage at the UFC 311 press conference, the rivalry is building into a compelling storyline heading into their January fight. During an interview with ‘Kayo Sports’, Dvalishvili confronted his Dagestani rival backstage, asking, “Why do you disrespect me?” as he approached Nurmagomedov, making it clear that the animosity between them had reached a boiling point.

The bantamweight champion’s comment was quickly dismissed by ‘Young Eagle,’ who responded, “What did I say?” Tensions rose as security intervened to prevent the situation from escalating further. Dvalishvili repeated his question, and Umar Nurmagomedov fired back, “Because I want [to].” As security attempted to de-escalate, ‘Machine’ upped the ante, threatening, “Come here, I’m gonna slap your a–.” Both fighters were separated, but as Nurmagomedov was being escorted away, he dropped his cousin’s famous line, “Call me anytime.” Merab Dvalishvili later explained why the confrontation with Umar Nurmagomedov felt personal to him.

Dvalishvili further added, “I even told him I’m going to fight him one day. But now he’s talking trash online. Real men don’t do that, you know? So yeah, it’s personal for me.” With UFC 311 in January approaching, the MMA community will be waiting to see these two settle their differences. Who do you think will win between the two? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.