Merab Dvalishvili claims he should have killed himself if he lost to Petr Yan at UFC Las Vegas: ‘I had extra pressure’
Surging UFC bantamweight contender, Merab Dvalishvili has claimed that he should have killed himself if he suffered defeat to former undisputed champion, Petr Yan in their UFC Las Vegas main event last weekend – questioning the Dudinka native’s character.
Headlining his premier event under the UFC banner, Dvalishvili, who entered the main event tilt as the #3 ranked bantamweight contender, managed to land a comprehensive and straightforward unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45) victory over former champion, Yan.
Shooting for an eye-watering 47 separate takedowns over the course of their five round affair, Georgia native, Dvalishvili set an unbearable pace on Russian striker, Yan, mitigating the latter’s offensive output throughout their main event matchup.
Merab Dvalishvili claims he would have contemplated suicide if he lost to Petr Yan
However, candidly, the Tbilisi native claimed that he would have explored the idea of suicide if he lost to Yan – expressing his dislike for the latter’s character.
“I had extra pressure to represent my country – my people, my team,” Merab Dvalishvili informed assembled media following UFC Las Vegas. “We were working so hard, and I want to just represent ‘good’. I said, I don’t care if any other fighter [defeats me], but [if I] lost against him (Petr Yan), I should kill myself or something.”
“He’s a great fighter, like I said before, he’s a little bit cocky,” Merab Dvalishvili explained. “And yeah, I love fighters because they are humble. They are all good people. And I don’t think this guy is a very good guy.”
Immediately following his judging win over Yan, Dvalishvili, a training partner of current bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling, explained how he would reject the opportunity to fight the Uniondale native in a title fight – leading to a stark warning from promotional head-honcho, Dana White.
“That’s a personal decision he (Merab Dvalishvili) needs to make,” Dana White said. “If that’s what he wants to do, I can tell you how that story ends. It’s not a good ending to that story. But, he’s a big boy, he can figure that out on his own.”
“You can still be friends and want what your friend has,” Dana White explained. “It would be a really bad idea for Merab to go down that path [avoiding Aljamain Sterling].”
