Umar Nurmagomedov has fired back at “The Machine” Merab Dvalishvili after the fighter accused him of receiving special privileges at UFC because of his connections to Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Nurmagomedov rose eight spots to No. 2 in the UFC bantamweight rankings following his impressive unanimous decision victory over top contender Cory Sandhagen last weekend at UFC on ABC 7. Nurmagomedov will next fight for the title against the winner of Sean O’Malley vs. Dvalishvili in the main event of UFC 306 on September 14.
However, Dvalishvili is reluctant to face Umar Nurmagomedov because he believes Nurmagomedov is on a fast track to title contention, arguing that Nurmagomedov is not working as hard as other top fighters and is being pressured by his cousin, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
“We all know why he’s being pushed,” Dvalishvili recently told heavywgt MMA. “He’s Khabib’s cousin. He’s a good fighter. I have a lot of respect for him. If Aljamain Sterling worked hard to get here, if I worked hard to get here, if Corey Sandhagen worked hard to get here…Sean O’Malley is being pushed, Umar is being pushed. It hurts me a little bit to see how hard he’s worked. I wasn’t sure I was going to get a title fight until two weeks ago…I’m not excited about this fight because I know he could easily get here. He’s a good fighter, but he’s being pushed. It’s like I’m cheating a little bit to get here. I’ve had 12 fights in the UFC. I’ve beaten seven or eight ranked fighters.”
Umar Nurmagomedov responded by pointing out that fighters with similar or shorter winning streaks have challenged for the title, with the unbeaten Dagestan contender further reminding Dvalishvili of his hesitation to fight his teammate Sterling while holding the title.
“Yan [the] After the title [six wins]. [O’Malley] rear
[four wins]Merab is [have fought] for [the] “I won the title last year with Arjo,” he wrote to X. “Stop crying. [You’re] I’m just scared that it’s going to take everything away from you.”
Jan won six races and was in contention for the title
O’Malley after four wins
Merab was able to compete with Arjo for the title last year.
I need to stop crying
You’re just afraid that I’ll take it all away from you.
— Umar Nurmagomedov (@UNmgdv)
August 6, 2024
Meanwhile, Khabib Nurmagomedov has said he wants Dvalishvili to beat O’Malley so his cousin can fight for the title against Georgia’s neighbour.
