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Merab Dvalishvili has been doing great things lately, and a former training partner has high praise for the UFC bantamweight champion. While being interviewed on a recent edition of Bowks Talking Bouts, Sasha Palatnikov discussed multiple topics ahead of what would be an eventual disqualification victory over Phil Hawes at DBX 2 on June 14.
Palatnikov has a history of training out of Syndicate MMA, and the current UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili is one of the first names that comes to mind for many when that gym is mentioned.
When offering up his thoughts on Dvalishvili earning his second win over Sean O'Malley at UFC 316, Palatnikov said:
"I love Merab. Merab's the man. When I was training at Syndicate, he had been training there for a while too... He's one of a kind. He's the GOAT in my opinion. Coolest guy, super nice dude, works so incredibly hard. All of his hard work is showing and that's the beauty of it. Yeah, I just wish him nothing but the best and all of the success."
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"Same with all the coaching staff and all the boys at Syndicate too that helped him and have been getting him ready. That's the thing in the fight game when you have a solid group of people around you who want the best for you, you're going to be able to accomplish anything. You can see that with Merab," he added.
Check out Sasha Palatnikov's thoughts below (15:21):
Merab Dvalishvili could face a potential 'tough matchup' at bantamweight, according to a former UFC champion
Merab Dvalishvili is regarded by many as the bantamweight GOAT, but a former multi-time 135-pound champion saw a tough challenge that Dvalishvili could face pre-UFC Atlanta.
Appearing on the JAXXON PODCAST in the days before Saturday's UFC Fight Night effort, TJ Dillashaw touted a former opponent of his as someone who could potentially give the reigning champion some difficulties in the cage. For context purposes, this thought was uttered before Cody Garbrandt fell short to Raoni Barcelos over the weekend.
When spotlighting his former adversary across two UFC bantamweight title fights, Dillashaw stated:
"I'm hoping [Cody] Garbrandt can make a run back because I think Garbrandt would be really a tough matchup for Merab. He packs a f***in punch. He'll stand his ground. He's hard to take down. He's hard to hold down. If Garbrandt can get a run back underneath himself again, I think that'd be an awesome fight to see eventually."
