"I hate it" - When Dana White slammed Merab Dvalishvili’s attitude towards title shot

UFC CEO Dana White once stated that he was not pleased with formerly No. 1-ranked bantamweight contender Merab Dvalishvili's attitude towards a title shot.

'The Machine' is set to defend his 135-pound gold for the second time and will face former champion Sean O'Malley in a rematch at UFC 316 next week.

However, before becoming the UFC bantamweight champion, Dvalishvili did not particularly want to compete for the title, which would have required him to face his longtime friend and former champion Aljamain Sterling. After 'Suga' dethroned Sterling at UFC 292, 'The Machine' wanted his long-awaited title shot, but at first wanted an immediate rematch to be offered to 'Funk Master.'

White, in the 'Dana White's Contender Series' 2023 post-fight presser, slammed Dvalishvili for this attitude. According to White, if a fighter isn't interested in proving themselves the best, the fight game is not for them.

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He said:

"Yeah, I hate it. Why did you even get into this sport if that's your mentality and the way that you think? 'I don't even want the title, I don't even want the championship. We're friends, we're this, we're that.' You can be friends with everybody in this business."

White added:

"This is not about friendship. This is about finding who the best in the world is, and if you don't want to find out who the best in the world is, this is not the place for you."

Check out Dana White's comments below:

Merab Dvalishvili reveals game plan against Sean O'Malley in rematch

In a recent interview with Kevin Iole, Merab Dvalishvili discussed his game plan heading into the UFC 316 rematch with Sean O’Malley. The Georgian fighter believes the rematch will be different stylistically as O'Malley will make adjustments to stop Dvalishvili from taking him down, unlike the first time.

Hence, Dvalishvili plans to strike with 'Suga' and will be looking for a finish. He said:

"Sean will make some adjustments, he may stop my takedowns, and if he stops my takedowns now, I'm planning to strike with him and keep up and challenge my striking with another top opponent... I'm also looking for a finish in this fight."

Check out Merab Dvalishvili's comments below:

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Edited by Subham