"He's only getting better in my eyes" - Ex-UFC champ shares definitive preview of Merab Dvalishvili vs. Petr Yan title rematch

Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker recently shared his take on the Merab Dvalishvili vs. Petr Yan title rematch.

Dvalishvili and Yan are set to clash in an exciting bantamweight title rematch at UFC 323 this weekend at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. In their previous encounter at UFC Fight Night 221 in March 2023, Dvalishvili dominated Yan over five rounds and ultimately got his hand raised via unanimous decision.

Dvalishvili is on an incredible 14-fight win streak and is coming off a unanimous decision win over Cory Sandhagen at UFC 320 in October. If he beats Yan again this weekend, he'll become the first UFC champion to secure four title defenses in one calendar year.

Given Dvalisvili's dominant reign over the bantamweight division, Whittaker doesn't see Yan redeeming his previous loss against the Georgian-born fighter. In a recent interview with Fox Sports Australia, Whittaker shared his two cents on the Dvalishvili-Yan rematch and said:

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"Obviously, he's [Dvalishvili] a wrestler, and his wrestling game is just so strong and he uses that to such devastating effect. He's only getting better in my eyes. Everyone can attest that his weakness is his standup, but over the last five fights, I want to say, his standup has gotten significantly better."

He added:

"Bar a puncher's chance, I just don't see where a weakness of his is right now. There's always a puncher's chance in every fight. Him shooting the same time Petr decides to throw a knee, it could happen... I don't see it going any differently. I think he's gotten defensively more sound with his striking." [H/t: MMA Junkie]

Watch the full interview below:

Merab Dvalishvili outlines goal for Petr Yan rematch at UFC 323

Merab Dvalishvili recently opened up about his goal for his fourth title defense this year and made it clear that he wants to get a finish over Petr Yan in their rematch. Yan has notably never lost a fight via knockout or submission.

In an interview with MMA Junkie, Dvalishvili expressed his desire to become the first fighter to finish Yan and said:

"A finish would be good. But we all know nobody was able to finish Petr Yan. He has some split [decision] losses before, and I think only a unanimous decision loss against me. Otherwise, he only lost by decision, so he's good. I'm just focusing on this fight: Get healthy, and win this fight. That's all I want. But a finish would be sweet." [H/t: MMA Junkie]