Merab Dvalishvili reacted after losing in his bid to reclaim the UFC bantamweight title in the main event of UFC 333 against Petr Yan.
In a trilogy bout that won Fight of the Night, Dvalishvili started strong by winning the first two rounds before dropping the final three against Yan, who won the pair’s three-fight series 2-1.
It was a tough loss for Dvalishvili, who was trying to get his belt back, as two losses to the current champion Yan mean that Dvalishvili likely won’t be fighting for the belt again anytime soon.
Merab Dvalishvili Reacts to UFC 333 Main Event Loss
Speaking to UFC commentator Daniel Cormier after UFC 333, Dvalishvili shared his reaction to losing his trilogy bout against Yan.
“Only what surprised me is myself. You guys know I don’t like to make excuse, but I can do better. Congratulations to Petr Yan and for his family. Good fight. He beat me today. He’s the better man. He’s the winner today. Again, congratulations to him,” Dvalishvili said (via MMAjunkie.com).
What Will Merab Dvalishvili Do Next?
Anytime you have two losses to the current champion, it makes the road back to the title that much harder, so Dvalishvili is likely going to have to go on a three-fight win streak to get another title shot at 135 lbs.
That being said, one thing that could help him drastically is if Yan defends his belt against Sean O’Malley and loses it, as Dvalishvili has two previous wins over O’Malley. So if O’Malley can go in there and beat Yan, then Dvalishvili can get back to the title in short order.
For his next fight, look for Dvalishvili to fight someone else ranked in the top five of his weight class for his next time out. A rematch against Umar Nurmagomedov, who is also coming off a loss, would be interesting, but perhaps the UFC could consider booking Payton Talbott against him and seeing just how good Talbott truly is.
Either way, despite this tough loss, Dvalishvili is still an amazing fighter and one who commanded the respect of all MMA fans watching the fight.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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