Former champ talks Sean Strickland's title shot, Merab Dvalishvili threatens opponent ahead of UFC 311, Colby Covington opens up: MMA News Roundup

Robert Whittaker weighs in on Sean Strickland's title rematch, Merab Dvalishvili makes a threat ahead of his UFC 311 bout, and Colby Covington discusses losing three undisputed title fights.

Find out more details in today's (Dec. 11) Sportskeeda daily news roundup.

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#3. Robert Whittaker reacts to Sean Strickland being handed Dricus du Plessis rematch

Robert Whittaker recently shared his reaction to the news that Sean Strickland has been given a middleweight title rematch against Dricus du Plessis.

The two will headline UFC 312, which takes place on Feb. 8 in Sydney, Australia. The pair first fought back at UFC 297, which saw 'Stillknocks' clinch the title via a razor close split decision. Since then, du Plessis has defended the belt against Israel Adesanya, whereas Strickland has defeated Paulo Costa.

Speaking in a recent episode of his MMArcade podcast, 'The Reaper' shared his thoughts on the announced rematch. He said:

"I'm surprised Sean literally just sat out. Everyone was laughing at him when he said, 'I'm gonna sit out until I get my title shot.' Dude straight-up got the title shot, props for that. Like, you got to give it to him. The guy straight-up stuck by what he said."

Check out Whittaker's comments here (0:25):

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#2. Merab Dvalishvili makes threat toward Umar Nurmagomedov ahead of UFC 311 bout

UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili has issued a stern threat toward Umar Nurmagomedov ahead of their upcoming title clash at UFC 311.

Following the announcement of their bout, tensions escalated between the pair last weekend when they came face-to-face at the PPV press conference.

Both men were taking part in different interviews backstage but they soon spotted each other and began hurling insults. Security then stepped in before the two fighters came to blows.

'The Machine' was then asked what happened at the press conference during a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, to which he issued a threat towards Nurmagomedov. He said:

"He [Nurmagomedov] may get slapped after the fight. Because the fighting [inside the cage] not a real fight, it's a sport. Yeah, if Umar doesn't apologize [to] me, it's going to happen. Even if I have to go to Dagestan, I will go. Hey! I love Dagestan and I've got so many friends in Dagestan and I respect Dagestan people. They are good people. But Umar made a big mistake with me and Umar has to pay for this."

Catch Dvalishvili's comments here:

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#3. Colby Covington gets honest whilst discussing three undisputed title fight losses

Colby Covington recently showed fans a rare glimpse of his vulnerable side, after opening up on the aftermath of his three UFC title fight losses.

ESPN MMA is posting a 'UFC Journey: Colby Covington vs. Joaquin Buckley' series ahead of their welterweight clash this weekend. During the first episode, 'Chaos' got brutally honest when he discussed what he was feeling after coming so close to the belt on multiple occasions. He said:

"So, it'll be a year since my last fight. I've used that time to really grow myself as a martial artist and as a person. Mentally speaking, I'm in a better place [than] I've ever been. After I lost three shots at the undisputed title, it felt like the lowest of low. I lost and forgot who I was and that was a good reminder that woke me up again."

Catch Covington's comments here (2:18):