Khabib Nurmagomedov believes the UFC pressured Merab Dvalishvili into fighting his cousin Umar Nurmagomedov. Dvalishvili had long resisted the fight, claiming Umar was undeserving of a title shot and was being pushed by the UFC due to his family connection to Khabib. Dana White stated that Dvalishvili accepted the fight because he couldn't tolerate Umar's disrespect any longer.
“I believe the UFC … pressured and made him fight … The UFC needed a co-main event fight, that’s my personal opinion.”on Saturday at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. While Umar has long been the most eligible candidate for a title shot, the matchup didn’t come to fruition without some drama.
After winning the strap against Sean O’Malley at UFC 306 last year, Dvalishvili initially made it clear that he didn’t want his first title defense to be against Umar. “The Machine” claimed Umar was still undeserving of a title shot and was being pushed by the UFC due to his relation to Khabib, who is is his cousin. When the matchup was eventually made official, Dana White said Dvalishvili accepted the booking as he couldn’t tolerate the “disrespect” from Umar anymore.
“The difficulty was only because Merab didn't want to fight,” Khabib recently told Gorilla Fighting. “I believe that the UFC made Merab fight and they pressured him and made him fight . The UFC needed a co-main event fight. That's my personal opinion. Umar, after Sandhagen was targeting the belt.” Dvalishvili had a long road to the UFC title, which was partly due to his unwillingness to fight his teammateDemetrious Johnson: 'Moicano' Tougher Fight for Makhachev Than TsarukyanEx-Bellator Featherweight Champ Patricio Freire Released from PFL ContractBroadcast Plans Revealed for PFL’s Road to Dubai Champions Series Event
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