'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAYACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABjAAEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABwgQAAIBAwIHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEDAgAFEQQxBgcIEhMhIgEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAgQRAAEEAwEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMAAQIEESEiMv/aAAwDAQACEQMRAD8AlHCnT/cLly+VKV70Che0jUtJt/lYjtWJKgthnEkZ32rHLmT0zmJM55VMwOMY+Tj1SlCsYrlP3L2+8qq6EUA1sQbY1//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
It appears as though Merab Dvalishvili will be out of action until the end of the year due to the requirement of hand surgery.
During the UFC 288 weigh-in show, former middleweight champion Chris Weidman revealed that his teammate will be undergoing surgery to fuse a bone in his hand. He mentioned that he suffered the injury during training and it's a similar surgery to what he's had in the past.
"So, he [Dvalishvili] has to get the same surgery I had, where he has to get a fusion in his hand. Basically, he was punching hard and punching right...these two right knuckles where he's suppose to punch and the joint right in the middle of your hand...the bone starts coming up and pushing into that joint and the bones start fraying."
Weidman then outlined a timeline in which he believes his teammate will return to the octagon. He desribed the surgery and mentioned that 22 weeks is a likely when he'll be ready to compete, saying:
"Now they have to eliminate that joint completely and put some type of bone there. I had my hip bone put in there, he's gotta get some type of bone, fuse that joint...I think it's gonna be like a 16 week recovery...I see him fighting at 22 weeks out."
It will be interesting to see who the promotion match Dvalishvili up with when he returns as the bantamweight division could look much different.
Merab Dvalishvili is riding a 9-fight winning streak
Merab Dvalishvili has emerged as a worthy contender in the UFC bantamweight division as he is currently riding a nine-fight winning streak dating back to 2018.
'The Machine' most recently earned a unanimous decision win over Petr Yan this past March at UFC Fight Night 221. It was a significant win over a former banamtweight champion that could possibly even secure him a title shot when returns depending on who the champion is.
Prior to his win over Yan, the 32-year-old defeated former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, which ended up being the soon-to-be Hall of Famer's final fight as he announced his retirement shortly after.
