Merab Dvalishvili Reveals Two Reasons Behind UFC 323 Title Loss to Petr Yan
Merab Dvalishvili considers Petr Yan his biggest challenge and has once more confirmed that he’s fighting Yan next. The Russian fighter dethroned Dvalishvili last year at UFC 323 when they ran it back.
However, right after the loss, the promotion promised “The Machine” an immediate rematch whenever he’s ready. The Georgian had successfully defended his bantamweight title three times within 12 months before losing to Yan in his fourth title defense. His willingness to remain active earned him the UFC’s respect and an immediate title rematch.
Yan had lower back surgery earlier this year, and thus, the “No Mercy” vs. Dvalishvili 3 bout has not been made official yet.
Merab Dvalishvili breaks down 2 reasons why he lost to Petr Yan at UFC 323
Merab Dvalishvili, in a recent sit-down with N3on, said that in his UFC 323 bout with Petr Yan, he made technical mistakes that cost him the title. Additionally, on fight night, Dvalishvili sparred with two different fighters, which he believes he should never have done before entering the octagon. He told N3on:
“I am fighting Petr Yan [next]….Petr Yan is the biggest challenge and the toughest guy in my weight class now… UFC told me this right after my fight [ Hunter Campbell said that I will get a title rematch whenever I am ready to go again].”
The 35-year-old added:
“I think fight day I’m sparring with 2 guys… I’m crazy. And then in the fight, I made some technical mistakes I don’t want to talk about now.”
Check out Merab Dvalishvili’s comments below:
Merab Dvalishvili likes to warm up for 5 rounds before making the walk to the octagon. However, the co-main event at UFC 323 ended much sooner than expected after Alexandre Pantoja suffered a gruesome arm injury in the 0:26 second mark of Round 1, forcing “The Machine” to make his walk much earlier than planned. His corner believes an insufficient warm-up could be a reason the Georgian could not perform to his full potential.
The UFC 323 bout was also Dvalishvili’s fourth fight of 2025. He had gone through four weight cuts that year, which can be exhausting and take a toll on any fighter.
