Merab Dvalishvili: ‘I Have Everything Ahead Of Me’

“My cardio, for sure, my pressure and I have a little bit different style because it’s hard to read,” Dvalishvili said, describing what makes him different than Cejudo’s past opponents. “I can fight everywhere; I can wrestle, I can strike, I got good jiu-jitsu, and I believe I’m dangerous everywhere, and that’s why everyone has a hard time when they fight me. I think Henry Cejudo will realize that, too.

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“I think this fight is a number one contender fight. I think the winner of us will fight for the title. If I beat Henry Cejudo, I believe I will be the number one contender to fight for the title, especially because I will have a 10-fight win streak and it will be my third former UFC champion that I’ve beaten. Nobody’s done that before this to fight for the title; I will be the first one. The people I see everywhere, they mention that I should fight for the title, and that’s my main goal now.”

With that being said, Dvalishvili doesn’t underestimate the former champion, and is quick to give Cejudo props for his long list of accolades. So that’s why in preparation for this fight, “The Machine” moved to Las Vegas to fully immerse himself in his training camp. At Syndicate MMA, Dvalishvili is surrounded by elite martial artists and UFC athletes, including Sterling. The 33-year-old is also a short drive away from the UFC Performance Institute, where he can stay on top of his recovery and nutrition.

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“Living in Vegas definitely changed, in a good way, my training style and my lifestyle, in general,” Dvalishvili said. “It’s so much easier to, after my training, go get lunch at the UFC PI and see my friends and hang out there a little bit.

“My training camp is simple; I train every day. I don’t change much, I just train hard every day and I try to get better everywhere. This time, my opponent is Henry Cejudo, and all I have to do is go and show myself and do my best. I believe I can win against him. All I want to do is, the work I put in, I want to represent it and show up there. If I show up, I believe I have the skill to beat the former UFC champion and Olympic champion Henry Cejudo.”

If Dvalishvili gets the job done on February 17, there’s a good chance he’s fighting the winner of O’Malley versus Vera at UFC 299 next month in Miami, Florida. While he’d rather fight anyone for a title than not fight for one at all, Dvalishvili hopes the current champion comes out on top.

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“I’m rooting for O’Malley because I’ve wanted to fight him since 2018, when I won my first fight in the UFC, and I’ve been calling his name to fight him,” Dvalishvili said. “I’m calling him out not because I think I’m going to beat him, but I see him as a challenge, I see him as a star, and I want to fight him.

“I think, right now, from the contenders, I’m the hardest matchup for Sean O’Malley. Chito Vera, stylistically, it’s an easy fight for [O’Malley] because Chito just strikes and it’s easy to read him…it’s no secret, O’Malley loves strikers. I’m unpredictable, and it’s so hard to read me and know what I’m going to do.”