Merab Dvalishvili no longer feuding with Petr Yan ahead of UFC 323

LAS VEGAS – What many expected to be the reignition of an old feud has turned into a respectful truce.

Merab Dvalishvili returns to the octagon this Saturday to defend his UFC bantamweight title against the man who he's arguably beefed with the most in his career, Petr Yan. However, surprisingly, the two have been very respectful in the build up to their rematch in the main event of Saturday's UFC 323 at T-Mobile Arena.

Dvalishvili (21-4 MMA, 14-2 UFC) confirmed to reporters at Wednesday's UFC 323 media day, that he indeed is no longer feuding with Yan (19-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC).

"That time it was more personal for me. Now it's more competition because we fought once already and I beat him," Dvalishvili explained. "Every time he was fighting I was cheering for him, and I look at his Instagram, and he's a great father, and as a fighter he's always been a good fighter. The only problem I had with him was that he was bullying. He was talking trash about me and Aljo (Aljamain Sterling), about our team, and he was just not giving us respect. That was the problem, but now it's all good. I shake his hand and wish him the best in his life."

Dvalishvili and Yan fought in 2023 in the main event of a UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas. The two had plenty to say in the build-up, and they even got into a scuffle during their staredown at weigh-ins. Dvalishvili ended up dominating, beating Yan in a unanimous decision.

"The Machine" much more prefers things the way they currently are, as he's not a fan of trash talk – which is often seen in MMA.

"I never liked this made-up drama," Dvalishvili said. "It's a fight, and we're professionals, people will watch anyway. ... I don't like this man. MMA fans will watch our fights anyway. If it's not organic, why do we have to disrespect each other? I never liked this. Whatever it was, it was real. I’m a real guy. Maybe I joke, but joke is joke. I don't like to talk trash for no reason, and I don't like somebody to disrespect me for no reason."

As far as the fight, Dvalishvili looks to break a few records. On Saturday, he could become the first fighter to defend a UFC title four times in a calendar year, and the first fighter to ever defend the UFC bantamweight title four consecutive times.

Dvalishvili intends to not only dominate Yan as he did in 2023, but also add another record in the process.

"I'm looking to finish him, but it's going to be tough because nobody has ever finished him," Dvalishvili said. "But I want to win against him, just another win, and of course it's going to be a record with four won fights this year, and it's another win in the UFC. Every win is important for me, important for my team and my country. I want to show a good fight for the UFC fans. In the last fight between me and Petr, it was good, but I want to do an even better fight and keep improving. I keep improving every time."

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Merab Dvalishvili no longer feuding with Petr Yan ahead of UFC 323