Merab Dvalishvili open to Song Yadong fight at UFC 334 after Petr Yan trilogy
Merab Dvalishvili said a fight with Song Yadong less than a month after his Petr Yan trilogy bout would make sense even if he loses on Saturday.
Merab Dvalishvili has said he would be willing to face Song Yadong at UFC 334, less than a month after his trilogy bout with bantamweight champion Petr Yan at UFC 333.
The former champion meets Yan in the co-main event in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, ending a 10-month layoff. Yan beat Dvalishvili in their second fight to avenge a 2023 defeat. That loss stopped Dvalishvili becoming the first fighter in UFC history to defend a belt four times in a calendar year, after title defences that included wins over Cory Sandhagen and Umar Nurmagomedov.
At UFC 333 media day, Dvalishvili was asked whether he would be more careful about booking fights close together. He said he would not again agree to face Yan two months after a title defence because he needed more time for that fight, but stood by his busy schedule. He said: “I don’t regret that I was busy last year and I’m happy even when I lost.” Song moved to the front of the bantamweight contenders by knocking out Nurmagomedov in the second round at UFC Shanghai. He had previously come up short in big fights against both Yan and Sandhagen.
Dvalishvili called Song the obvious next opponent if he beats Yan, while acknowledging that the UFC does not usually turn fights around so quickly. He was also torn over the timing, saying: “When I want to fight, my crazy mind set tells me I should fight November at Madison Square Garden, but I should take time, too, because November I want to open a gym and I should just relax and stuff like this.” He then said a fight with Song would make sense whatever happens on Saturday. Dvalishvili said: “I think even if I lost, I should still fight him because if Petr beats me, then [Song] should not fight Yan because Yan already beat him.”
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