Merab Dvalishvili is going to go down in history as one of the craziest champions the UFC has ever seen.
This is a guy who can’t stop attacking fans who trash talk him. Say something negative to him at an event and he’ll leap into the stands to remind you this isn’t the internet. He’ll also pull a not-so-elaborate ruse to hide a bad injury just so he can stay in a fight he didn’t even want in the first place.
By every account but the UFC’s, Dvalishvili had his arm twisted into accepting a title fight against Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 311. Umar repeatedly suggested Merab would find an excuse to withdraw from their fight. Instead, it turns out “The Machine” pushed through a bad cut on his leg, a staph infection in that cut, and a pinched nerve in his back to compete on January 18th.
Michael Bisping memorizing the commission eye charts to hide he was blind in one eye. That’s a bit smarter and sneakier than what Merab pulled, but if it works, it ain’t stupid. Well, someone working at the CSAC may be stupid, but that’s a whole other story.
