Dana White opens up on "goofy" relationship with Merab Dvalishvili following in-cage chat at UFC 311: "He’s done some things"

Dana White touched on his turbulent relationship with bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili following 'The Machine's' emphatic title victory at UFC 311. Dvalishvili faced off against the previously undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov and put on an impressive performance to defend his belt.

It is no secret that the UFC brass has had problems with Dvalishvili. During Aljamain Sterling's reign as bantamweight champion from 2021 until 2023, the Georgian refused to fight 'Funk Master' for the title given their close friendship, having been teammates for many years.

His decision did not sit well with the promotion's CEO, Dana White. Following his UFC 311 win, cameras captured Dvalishvili and White sharing a lengthy chat in the octagon. During White's post-event media appearance, upon being asked to shed light on the conversation, the promotional frontman said:

"He and I have had kind of a goofy relationship. So he was just saying, 'Listen, I love the UFC. Thank you for everything.' He was going crazy... It's been pretty public how goofy our relationship is. He's done some things that I didn't love. I don't dislike him at all, we've just had some moments. That's typical, I have moments with everybody. No biggie."

Catch Dana White's comments on Merab Dvalishvili below (12:22):

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Dana White rules out Arman Tsarukyan receiving next title shot

Arman Tsarukyan and Islam Makhachev were scheduled to headline UFC 311 on Jan. 18 in a highly anticipated lightweight title clash. Having fought six years prior, at UFC Fight Night 149 in a competitive bout that saw Makhachev earn victory, fans were eager to see who would come out on top in their second bout.

However, the day before the event was scheduled to happen Tsarukyan withdrew from the fight due to injury. He was replaced by Renato Moicano, who was already featured on the same card against Beneil Dariush.

Following Makhachev's first-round submission win over Moicano, UFC CEO Dana White appeared in front of the media where he was asked what the promotion's plans for Tsarukyan were. He responded, saying:

"He's going back to the drawing board. I don't want anybody to ever fight hurt, ever. We've been in these positions before. [We] went down there with a doctor, we went down there with Heather from the [UFC Performance Institute]. You can ask any fighter or anybody else, she's the best in the world. You miss opportunities sometimes, and he did." [1:47-2:15 in Dana White's interview]