Khabib Nurmagomedov defends his cousin Umar Nurmagomedov's right to a title shot against Merab Dvalishvili, citing Umar's impressive 18-0 record. Khabib believes Umar's success is due to his own merit, not his familial connection. He also suggests that Dvalishvili's recent behavior stems from the pressures of being a champion.
on Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, California. Dvalishvili was initially loathe to fight Umar, deeming him undeserving of a title shot.
While Umar didn’t seem to say anything inflammatory about the bantamweight champion, Dvalishvili claims he felt disrespected by the Dagestani. While announcing the UFC 311 matchup, Dana White revealed that Dvalishvili agreed to the matchup because he was done feeling disrespected by his opponent. While “The Machine” continues to voice his respect for Umar’s teammates leading up to UFC 311, he hasn’t stopped taking shots at his upcoming foe.
Khabib believes Dvalishvili was initially pretending to be nice guy but couldn’t handle his championship status very well. Dvalishvili has repeatedly accused Umar of being gifted a gold bid due to his relation to Khabib. However, “The Eagle” cites Umar’s impeccable record to justify his cousin’s legitimate claim to a title shot. Khabib is confident that on fight night Umar will show the world why Dvalishvili was acting “nervous” leading up to the bout.
“I think when he beginning his career, he was acting good. When he became champion, he cannot deal with this. Because life changing,” Khabib said at a recent press conference . “Before champion and after champion there is two life. You have to deal with this. About Umar gift – I think Umar deserve. I don’t know why Merab nervous… Umar here not because he is my cousin. He’s here because he’s 18-0 and 6-0 in the UFC. Umar wanna create his legacy. January 18, he will show why Merab nervous.
Dvalishvili won the title with a dominant unanimous decision win over Sean O’Malley at UFC 306 this past September, which extended his winning streak to 11.
MMA UFC Khabib Nurmagomedov Umar Nurmagomedov Merab Dvalishvili
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