"They are ordinary people" - Merab Dvalishvili drops eye-opening remark on Dagestani fighters, claims Khabib Nurmagomedov never met "worthy opponent"

Merab Dvalishvili recently made a bold claim about Dagestani fighters, including Khabib Nurmagomedov. Apart from labeling the others as "ordinary" ones, Dvalishvili stated that Nurmagomedov stayed undefeated due to a lack of worthy rivals.

Dvalishvili defeated Umar Nurmagomedov in his previous outing at UFC 311 to defend his UFC bantamweight title for the first time. The Georgian weaponized his class-apart wrestling skills and seemingly infinite cardio to hand 'Young Eagle' the first loss of his pro-MMA career.

His victory over the undefeated bantamweight prospect seems to have given him enough knowledge about the fight games of the other Dagestani fighters. A recent X update from @ChampRDS showcased 'The Machine's appreciation for the overall high quality of MMA fighters from Dagestan.

However, he mentioned that they are nowhere invincible and labeled them as "ordinary athletes". Dvalishvili also made a startling remark about why Khabib managed to stay undefeated even after having thirteen fights in the UFC. He cited 'The Eagle's' 29-0 undefeated record (13-0 in the UFC) to the lack of good-enough rivals during his time in the UFC. The current bantamweight champ said:

"Dagestanis are really good fighters. They have always excelled in martial arts... But at the same time, they are ordinary people, heavenly forces do not help them. They are ordinary athletes and others can defeat them, as you saw in my case. Khabib went undefeated, but he simply did not meet a worthy opponent."

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One of the top five current UFC bantamweights believes he has the tools to defeat Merab Dvalishvili

Merab Dvalishvili effectively used his wrestling skills and cardio to raise his hand at the end of his UFC 311 encounter against Umar Nurmagomedov. However, there were moments in the fight when he struggled to cope with Nurmagomedov's swift movements and striking.

The no.4 ranked UFC bantamweight, Cory Sandhangen, recently appeared in an interview with MMA on SiriusXM, where he mentioned that he can exploit Dvalishvili's lack of speed with his fast movements. Sandhagen also mentioned how his swift footwork could become the "kryptonite" for Dvalishvili and dethrone him. 'The Sandman' said:

"Not to be clickbaity, but I do think that I have the style to beat Merab. You can say whatever you want about my style, but I do believe that I have some of the best footwork in the sport, and I can create space better than anyone... I think that I have his [Dvalishvili's] kryptonite."