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Jon Anik recently made his feelings known on Merab Dvalishvili ahead of his rematch against Sean O'Malley at UFC 316 and made a bold statement on his legacy in the sport. Anik highlighted Dvalishvili's ascension up the rankings and most recent performances to assess where he stands among the bantamweight greats.
Dvalishvili is currently the reigning bantamweight champion and will defend his title against O'Malley. It will be their second bout against each other as 'The Machine' dethroned 'Suga' to become champion last September. He enters the fight following an impressive unanimous decision win over Umar Nurmagomedov, which saw him earn his first successful title defense.
In his latest conversation with MMA Junkie, Anik heaped praise on Dvalishvili and made a bold statement that he has cemented himself as the greatest bantamweight of all time.
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The UFC commentator mentioned that 'The Machine's' resume is exceptional and believes his wins over former champions and current top-ranked contenders prior to becoming champion has made his status undeniable. He said:
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"When I look at the body of work of [Dvalishvili] in the modern era... he's had twelve straight wins ever since [his last loss]... He left a murderers row of champions in this weight before he even fought for the title. He beat Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan, Jose Aldo, then he beat Sean O'Malley. Defends the title on the challenger's timeline and beating Umar Nurmagomedov... The greatest bantamweight of all time, not so quietly, is Merab 'The Machine' Dvalishvili."
Check out Jon Anik's comments regarding Merab Dvalishvili below:
How many losses does Merab Dvalishvili have in the UFC?
Jon Anik's bold statement regarding Merab Dvalishvili cementing his status as the greatest bantamweight of all time isn't so far-fetched as the Georgian has lost only twice in his UFC career.
Dvalishvili lost back-to-back fights to Frankie Saenz and Ricky Simon, respectively when he first joined the promotion. He had a 7-2 MMA record when he joined the promotion and fell to 7-4 after the losses.
Despite the losing skid, Dvalishvili ended up bouncing back from his setbacks in a big way as he surged up the bantamweight rankings until he captured the title from Sean O'Malley last September. He currently holds a 12-2 record in the promotion.
Check out Merab Dvalishvili's post-fight interview after becoming bantamweight champion below:
