Merab Dvalishvili: A Champion with Unusual Preparation
The UFC bantamweight champion, Merab Dvalishvili, surprised many by completing five full rounds of sparring in the gym last weekend in Las Vegas, just hours before his title defense against Cory Sandhagen at UFC 320. Dvalishvili (21-4) achieved a relatively dominant decision victory over Sandhagen (18-5) in what was apparently his second five-round fight of the day. During an appearance on the Jaxxon Podcast, UFC light heavyweight Khalil Rountree Jr., Dvalishvili’s teammate at Syndicate MMA in Las Vegas, revealed the unusual preparation.According to Wood, the five rounds are performed at a pace of “approximately 70 percent.” Despite not being a common practice in the sport, the coach describes it as “hard and technical fights.” In addition to the five rounds in the gym, Dvalishvili does an extra warm-up in the arena before the fight. The 34-year-old Georgian fighter usually does between three and five rounds with his teammate and former bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling, just before entering the octagon. Dvalishvili is known for his relentless physical condition. In the fight against Sandhagen, he achieved 20 takedowns, raising his career total to 117, the most in UFC history. He has already requested that the UFC schedule his next title defense in December.Merab has been doing this since I started training him [in 2020]. Every fight day, he comes in and spars for five rounds. He wanted to do six, and I had to stop him.
John Wood, head coach of Syndicate MMA
