MMA reporter fact-checks Merab Dvalishvili's staph infection rumors after new photos spark concern

Merab Dvalishvili recently sent fans into a frenzy ahead of his title fight against Sean O'Malley at UFC 306 at The Sphere next weekend. The Georgian-born fighter posted some pictures on social media that triggered speculations about him suffering from a staph infection.

Dvalishvili recently took to Instagram to announce an apparel drop with a brand for exclusive t-shirts and training kits. 'The Machine' posted several pictures of him sporting the themed fits while posing in an MMA cage. Eagle-eyed fans soon noticed an inflamed red spot on his left arm, which sparked concerns that the bantamweight title challenger had picked up a staph infection.

Fans soon flocked to the post's comments section to express their thoughts and question Dvalishvili's health status.

One fan asked Dvalishvili:

"Is that staph I see, merab?"

Another fan wrote:

"Staph has entered the chat."

One fan trolled Dvalishvili with PED use allegations and wrote:

"EPO and staph, cancels each other."

Check out some more comments below:

Screenshots from @merab.dvalishvili on Instagram

While many worried about the UFC 306 main event potentially getting canceled, MMA reporter Giorgi Kokiashvili rubbished any claims of Dvalishvili suffering from staph and confirmed 'The Machine' was fully healthy.

Reacting to an X post by MMA Uncensored, Kokiashvili posted a message debunking any infection claims and wrote:

"Before anyone goes too deep into it and MMA Uncensored, as always, finds something "strange" into fighter's camp, those are old pictures of Merab Dvalishvili and this is from today's video. All good as of now, and Merab is fully healthy!!!"

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Henry Cejudo shares prediction for Sean O'Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili title fight at UFC 306

Henry Cejudo recently shared his thoughts on the upcoming Sean O'Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili bantamweight title fight at UFC 306. After predicting the outcome of the fight, Cejudo added that the winner wouldn't hold the 135-pound strap for long due to the emergence of Umar Nurmagomedov.

During an interview with MMA Junkie, Cejudo explained why he saw Dvalishvili beating O'Malley in a dominant fashion. The former two-division UFC champion continued:

"I just feel like right now, the next person that's going to be in line to get the title shot is going to be Umar. And this is my prediction. Merab Dvalishvili is gonna stop Sean O'Malley at the Sphere. He's gonna beat him. He's either gonna 50-45 him -- or maybe not 50-45 because he may lose the first two rounds... But then, once Umar comes in, Umar's just gonna; he's gonna have his way with Merab."

Watch Henry Cejudo's comments below (13:20):