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Things got heated between Petr Yan and Merab Dvalishvili during their face-off for the upcoming blockbuster matchup on March 11, prompting the Georgian to fire shots at his opponent on social media.
The two have been somewhat cordial with one another throughout the years, despite having a history dating back to the Russian's title fights against Aljamain Sterling — training partner of 'The Machine.' In more recent times, the 135ers' relationship has soured, and they will get to settle their differences on Saturday.
In a post directed at Yan, Dvalishvili didn't hold back and fired shots at his bantamweight counterpart, insisting that the fan-favorite athlete "can't talk man to man" with him.
"First I asked Petr Yan to talk together with a journalist since we did not have a press conference and he agreed... I approached him myself at the hotel and he said no to me this time because he knows he can't talk man-to-man with me. Then talked trash saying I just wanted to promote myself. He was unprofessional at the face-off and again wouldn't look at me man-to-man and threw his arm at me in a sneaky way. See you in the octagon"
What was already a great matchup has become even more intriguing following the antics between the two. Both top UFC contenders are ready to put on a show, and the highly-anticipated affair is now less than 24 hours away.
Check out what Merab Dvalishvili had to say about Petr Yan's actions in the post below.
Petr Yan vs. Merab Dvalishvili: Will the winner be given a title shot?
Despite being ranked #2 and #3, respectively, the bantamweight division is in a strange situation, meaning the Petr Yan vs. Merab Dvalishvili title eliminator may not present a clear championship contender.
Aljamain Sterling is rumored to be defending his throne against Henry Cejudo later this year, leaving #1 ranked Sean O'Malley in limbo with no clear direction. Alongside those mentioned, Marlon Vera and Cory Sandhagen are matched up for a bout in the near future, which rounds out the complete top five at 135.
Although the next challenger for bantamweight gold, of course, hasn't been decided yet, Yan and Dvalishvili could find themselves behind a number of fighters in the pecking order.
