Back in January at UFC 311, Dvalishvili entered his first title defense against a very promising Nurmagomedov in the co-main event of the pay-per-view card. Dvalishvili had a tough fight in the first couple of rounds, but then went on to dominate and overwhelm Nurmagomedov to win a unanimous decision.

Merab Dvalishvili is garnering comparisons to the unbeaten UFC Hall of Fame star, Khabib Nurmagomedov following his victory overnight.

Dvalishvili’s triumph came after Kayla Harrison dethroned Julianna Pena in the co-main event to become the UFC’s bantamweight queen, submitting Pena in the second to live up to her favourable odds and join Cejudo as only the second athlete ever to boast an Olympic gold medal and UFC gold on their resume.