Merab Dvalishvili was dealing with quite a bit of adversity leading into UFC 311. Bantamweight champion Dvalishvili (19-4 MMA, 12-2 UFC) rallied to defeat Umar Nurmagomedov (18-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) by unanimous decision this past Saturday at Intuit Dome in Inglewood,

INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 18: Merab Dvalishvili of Georgia punches Umar Nurmagomedov of Russia in a bantamweight title fight during UFC 311 at Intuit Dome on January 18, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

Umar Nurmagomedov was the perfect fighter in the early rounds against UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili. While fatigue did not make a coward of Nurmagomedov, it certainly caused his downfall at UFC 311 on Saturday as Dvalishvili outpointed his foe en route to a unanimous decision win (48-47, 48-47, 49-46) to retain the bantamweight title.