Already the consensus greatest bantamweight champion in the history of the UFC, Merab Dvalishvili is now on the cusp of picking up another historic accolade for his stunning résumé.
Turning back the valiant title charge of perennial contender Cory Sandhagen at UFC 320 overnight, Merab Dvalishvili would record another routine unanimous decision win during his time as bantamweight pacesetter.
And with the victory, the Tbilisi favorite added Sandhagen to a recent run of victories against both Umar Nurmagomedov as well as Sean O’Malley during his time as champion.
Interestingly, one more victory for the Georgian would see him eclipse a record set by one of his closest friends and training partners.
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Merab Dvalishvili ties Aljamain Sterling for most bantamweight title defenses
Before his own roughshod run at bantamweight came a crashing halt against common-foe O’Malley, current featherweight star Aljamain Sterling broke the record for the most successful consecutive defenses of bantamweight gold.
Taking the title from Petr Yan in a memorable disqualification win, Sterling would beat the Russian in a rematch, before besting fellow ex-champions T.J. Dillashaw and the returning Henry Cejudo to make divisional history.
Given his trio of wins over Nurmagomedov and O’Malley, as well as Sandhagen, a fourth title fight win as champion for Dvalishvili would mark his name in history as the most prolific defending champion in organizational history.
To boot, the difficult nature in which it proves to be to defend bantamweight spoils, Dvalishvili’s accomplishments already chalked up make for impressive reading.
Who’s next for Merab Dvalishvili?
Already staking his claim for a spot on the end-of-year UFC 323 card in December, the always-active Dvalishvili has a host of contenders chasing him atop the division.
Most notably, former foe Nurmagomedov has been sounded out for a rematch with the Georgian ace despite the close nature of their first pairing at the beginning of this year.
First, however, the Russian must get through the streaking Mario Bautista in a high-stakes clash at UFC 321 later this month in Abu Dhabi.
Nurmagomedov has not competed since his defeat to Dvalishvili earlier this year; however, he retains the number two rank at bantamweight.
Furthermore, a rematch with Dudinka technician Yan also remains an option for Dvalishvili, who defeated the ex-champion in resounding fashion as recently as just two years ago.