Aljamain Sterling recently defended his longtime teammate Merab Dvalishvili in response to a fan’s accusation that he is dodging a fight with Umar Nurmagomedov. The Dagestani secured the top contender spot after his victory over Cory Sandhagen in August. One month later, Dvalishvili dethroned Sean O’Malley to capture the bantamweight title at UFC 306.
Nurmagomedov had been vocally pursuing a title shot against ‘The Machine’, but his callouts seemed insufficient to persuade the reigning champion to accept the matchup. Frustrated by the lack of progress, Nurmagomedov is now scheduled to face Song Yadong in the main event of UFC Tampa on Dec. 14.
A fan recently took to X to share a photo of Dvalishvili and reigning UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones, mocking both of them for not defending their titles against the top contenders.
‘Funk Master’ swiftly rejected the notion, labeling it as unreasonable. Sterling elaborated that Dvalishvili is coming off a title win and has consistently embraced difficult challenges throughout his career:
“You guys are exhausting. Constantly repeating stuff that makes NO sense. He just won the belt. Merab is Christian, not Muslim. Making one man’s religious beliefs the cause for ‘ducking’ is baffling. How the heck is that Merab’s fault?? Make it make sense. That’s right, you can’t!”
Even prior to winning the title, ‘The Machine’ has been downplaying Nurmagomedov’s status as a legitimate contender. Nurmagomedov alleged that Dvalishvili deliberately sought to schedule their fight for March, a period when he cannot compete due to Ramadan.
Similarly, Jones has also faced criticism from numerous fans lately for turning down a fight with interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall in a title unification bout. Instead, ‘Bones’ has opted for a highly anticipated matchup against Stipe Miocic to headline UFC 309 on Nov. 16.
When Aljamain Sterling criticized Dana White for his response to Merab Dvalishvili’s cut
During a training session in August in preparation for his title fight against Sean O’Malley, Merab Dvalishvili sustained a cut above his eye. He promptly took to social media and shared several videos that highlighted the injury’s immediate effects.
In response to Dvalishvili’s injury, UFC CEO Dana White furiously condemned him as “stupid” for publicly disclosing the laceration. However, Aljamain Sterling stepped in to defend Dvalishvili on X, minimizing the seriousness of the injury and asserting that it wasn’t a significant concern. ‘Funk Master’ also remarked that White’s comments were uncalled for.
