Merab Dvalishvili welcomes Cory Sandhagen’s callout.
After defeating Marlon Vera in this past Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 43 headliner in San Antonio, Sandhagen (17-4 MMA, 10-3 UFC) issued the streaking Dvalishvili (16-4 MMA, 9-2 UFC) a callout, dubbing him the best fighter in the division outside of the title fight.
Speaking to ESPN, Dvalishvili accepted Sandhagen’s challenge and gave the former interim title challenger high praise.
“I love the match because he’s great,” Dvalishvili said. “He’s a high-level fighter. Now he will be ranked maybe No. 3, so I love the fight. This guy (Sterling) is my friend. He’s the champion for a reason, and I would love to clean the division. I would love a new challenge. He called me. It makes sense, and I would love to fight him anytime.
“He’s good, he’s very technical, footwork, he has jiu-jitsu and everything. Even (though) I beat Petr and Petr beat him, I don’t overlook him. He’s dangerous, he’s a good fighter, he proved today by beating a tough ‘Chito’ Vera, and I would love to fight him.”
Dvalishvili has made his stance clear that he will not fight for the title as long as his friend and teammate, Aljamain Sterling, is champion. Dvalishvili earned the No. 1 spot in the UFC’s bantamweight rankings after scoring a shutout of former champion Petr Yan earlier this month.
Sterling defends his title against former dual champ Henry Cejudo in the UFC 288 main event on May 6, and Dvalishvili thinks Sterling has the edge everywhere.
“Aljo will dominate everywhere, even striking,” Dvalishvili said. “And if the fight lands to the bottom, even if Henry takes Aljo down or Aljo takes him down, it’s Aljo’s game on the ground. I see wherever the fight goes, Aljo will dominate this fight. Big respect for Henry Cejudo – even Aljo doesn’t like him too much, but as a fighter I respect him. He’s an Olympic champion, a two-division champion, but now is Aljo’s time, and Aljo is king of this division.”
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