Petr Yan warns Merab Dvalishvili about his broken nose

Yan plans to break Dvalishvili’s nose again at UFC 333

The current and two-time UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan has issued a clear warning to Merab Dvalishvili ahead of their third matchup.

Last year, Merab Dvalishvili successfully defended his title three times and was actually on track to become the first UFC fighter to defend his title four times in a single year. However, Petr Yan thwarted that plan by defeating him at UFC 323.

However, the UFC immediately promised Merab Dvalishvili a rematch, and kept that promise. The two will face off on October 24 in the co-main event. Unfortunately, the fight had to be delayed slightly because Petr Yan underwent back surgery earlier this year. Ahead of this fight, Petr Yan had another promising statement to make. He said:

“Merab, get good insurance for your nose, because I will have to break it again”

A few months earlier, Merab Dvalishvili had broken his nose again during sparring and reported that this was actually causing him difficulty breathing. The doctors told him that he would need another surgery to straighten his nose. During the procedure, additional bones would be broken and then repositioned correctly. However, surgery would mean that Merab Dvalishvili wouldn’t be able to fight for a year, which he naturally wants to avoid. That’s why he’ll likely wait until after his career to have the surgery, which, of course, gives his opponents a good opening. We won’t find out how Petr Yan will capitalize on this until the end of October, though. What do you think?

I’m looking forward to the matchup because there’s a lot riding on it. It’s their third encounter, which means they know each other well by now. I’m curious to see what strategies and tactics they’ll bring into the Octagon.