Conor McGregor reacts to footage of Merab Dvalishvili's last MMA loss, heaps praise on UFC bantamweight king: "Magnificent"

By Sunil Krishnan

Modified Apr 22, 2025 02:48 GMT

Conor McGregor (right) praises Merab Dvalishvili (left) for his rise to UFC championship [Images courtesy: Getty Images] — Conor McGregor (right) lauds Merab Dvalishvili (left). [Images courtesy: Getty Images]

Former UFC double champion Conor McGregor recently praised bantamweight kingpin Merab Dvalishvili for his rise through adversity in the promotion. Before achieving a twelve-fight win streak,

'The Machine' fell victim to back-to-back losses against Ricky Simon and Frankie Saenz. In Dvalishvili's second UFC bout, he refused to tap despite being choked for a considerable amount of time. Dvalishvili ended up losing the fight via technical submission (guillotine choke), but won the Fight of the Night award.

Stumbling upon the aforementioned fight's highlight, 'The Notorious' praised 'The Machine' and his never-give-up attitude that has helped him on the ascent. Sharing the clip, the Irishman tweeted:

"And now, years on, the reigning, defending UFC World Champion! Magnificent! Merab is A Star! 🌟"

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Check out Conor McGregor's comments below:

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Ilia Topuria believes in Conor McGregor's potential UFC return

Conor McGregor has not stepped into the octagon since his loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264, during which McGregor suffered a drastic leg injury. Following recovery, the Irishman was expected to fight Michael Chandler at the end of 'The Ultimate Fighter' in 2023. However, several reasons, including negotiations with the UFC, promotional obligations, and legal troubles, stalled his potential comeback.

In 2024, 'The Notorious' was scheduled to face 'Iron' at UFC 303, but was forced to withdraw from the fight due to a toe injury. Since then, the Irishman has turned his focus to promoting BKFC and paying heed to his political ambitions.

Although he has hinted at potential retirement, former UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria believes McGregor will return at some point. In a recent sit-down, 'La Leyenda' told Joe Rogan,

"I think he's gonna come back. Yeah, if they give the opportunity to guys who are 40 years old like [Andrei] Arlovski. You can have so many names, that fought at 40 years of age, why not Conor? Do you think it's gonna be exciting if I beat Islam and I give the chance to Conor? We had that talk [about potentially fighting McGregor]."

Check out Ilia Topuria's comments below (1:05:46):

About the author

Sunil holds a Bachelor of Science degree in visual communication. He started his professional career in 2023 and has previously worked with FirstSportz and Levitate Studios, among other organizations.

Sunil was drawn to MMA by Conor McGregor, especially the Irishman’s crossover boxing bout with Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2017. His favorite fighter is Jorge Masvidal for his wild and unorthodox approach.

Surprisingly, ‘The Notorious’ and ‘Gamebred’ do not find a place in his Mt. Rushmore, which includes Chuck Liddell, Anderson Silva, Alex Pereira, Daniel Cormier, and Khabib Nurmagomedov. He feels ONE Championship’s Rodtang Jitmuangnon has the ability to succeed in the UFC due to his power.

Sunil is of the opinion that the UFC is not doing enough to prevent eye pokes and does not mind soccer kicks in MMA.

In his free time, he likes to watch anime and films in general. He’s also a boxing historian, having gotten into the sport watching videos of fighters like Sugar Ray Leonard and Roberto Duran.

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Edited by Subham