UFC 306: Merab Dvalishvili Transfers Blame Onto Dana White & Co. for Never Testing Loyalty to Aljamain Sterling

Sep 10, 2024 | 2:07 PM EDT

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What's Your Perspective On

Is Dana White ignoring Merab Dvalishvili's loyalty to Aljamain Sterling? What's your take on this?

Merab Dvalishvili and Aljamain Sterling have always considered each other as brothers. But Dana White wasn’t happy when the Georgian star rejected fighting ‘Funk Master’ for the title. Yes, the UFC CEO was visibly angry and sounded off during a press conference last year after UFC 288, but Dvalishvili’s recent revelations indicate that the UFC never asked him to take on his best friend.

“Aljo was champion, and he’s my brother… but UFC never offered us to fight each other,” Merab Dvalishvili told Demetrious Johnson on the latter’s YouTube podcast. The Georgian star believes that Dana White’s anger was not justified because there was no way to “blame” him for not fighting Aljamain Sterling. After all, between them, there was no need to take on each other inside the Octagon.

“Of course, I say that I don’t want to fight Aljo, of course. But like, if the UFC really say [that] they send us contract, ‘Hey, Merab and Aljo, you guys have to fight each other… then they can blame on us,” Merab Dvalishvili added.

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Polls of the day

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Do you think Dana White should have tested Merab Dvalishvili's loyalty to Aljamain Sterling?

Yes, it's part of the game

No, loyalty should be respected

Depends on the situation

Not sure

Do you agree with Belal Muhammad's take on Dana White's reluctance?

Absolutely

Not at all

Partially

Need more info

Whats your Perspective on:

Is Dana White ignoring Merab Dvalishvili's loyalty to Aljamain Sterling? What's your take on this?

Have an interesting take?

Do you think Ignacio Bahamondes' father's kickboxing background gives him an edge in the UFC?

Absolutely

Maybe

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Who cares?

Do you think Dana White's rumored partnership with Turki Alalshikh will revolutionize boxing?

Absolutely

No way

Only time will tell

It's just a publicity stunt

While Dana White has never mentioned offering a fight against Aljamain Sterling to Merab Dvalishvili or vice versa, the former bantamweight champion echoed the same sentiment as his teammate. Let’s dig deeper at what ‘Funk Master’ had to say.

Aljamain Sterling, just like Merab Dvalishvili, never received an offer to fight the Georgian star either

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In a YouTube video, the former bantamweight champion came clean about the situation between him and Merab Dvalishvili. Aljamain Sterling claims that he never received any offer from Dana White to fight his teammate, while also confirming that after his inquiry, even ‘The Machine’ didn’t receive such an offer.

Sterling opened up on this situation only when the UFC CEO expressed his frustration about the situation between the two friends.

What’s your perspective on:

Is Dana White ignoring Merab Dvalishvili's loyalty to Aljamain Sterling? What's your take on this?

Have an interesting take?

“Me and my team, we were never offered… a contract to ever fight Merab. As far as I know from Merab, him and I talking, he was never offered a contract to fight me. So, I don’t even know why that whole narrative came about,” Aljamain Sterling stated on his YouTube channel. After listening to all these statements, we still don’t know why Dana White would bring up this situation during a press conference.

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What do you think about ‘The Machine’s revelation? Let us know in the comments down below.