UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili continues to live up to his nickname and even his coach admits its hard to shut “The Machine down.
Fresh off a historic win over Cory Sandhagen at UFC 320 this past Saturday in Las Vegas, Syndicate MMA head coach John Wood is already being forced to combat his fighters ceaseless grind. Dvalishvili, 34, expressed interest post-fight in making UFC history once again this time by becoming the first UFC champion to successfully defend their title for a fourth time in a calendar year, with hopes to fight again in December. Speaking Monday on The Ariel Helwani Show, Wood gave his perspective on the champ’s ambitions.
Id like to see Merab get some rest, Wood acknowledged to Uncrowned.
I dont want the [Alex] Pereira thing to happen, where youre overworked and something bad happens just because youve pushed the limits too much. We dont know when the human bodys going to go, Hey, this is too much or too little, or its enough.”
Dvalishvili has already made UFC history in plenty of ways during his impressive 14-fight hot streak. His 20 takedowns in his victory over Sandhagen set a new record for a UFC title bout and also pushed Dvalishvili above the 100-takedown mark for his career with the MMA leader making him the UFC first fighter to ever accomplish the latter feat. In addition, Dvalishvili’s current run represents the third-longest overall win streak in UFC history. Only three names sit ahead of him at this point former UFC champions Islam Makhachev and Kamaru Usman (15), and UFC Hall of Famer Anderson Silva (16).
Wood, whos been through the fire of multiple Dvalishvili camps, isnt shy about the toll they take. That being said, he ultimately expects a December turnaround to indeed be on tap for the champ.
Hes going to want that record,” Wood said of Dvalishvili. So can he do it? Absolutely. Do I think his body will hold up? Absolutely. Am I a fan of it? Im 50-50. Id like him to enjoy some of the stuff [outside MMA], but the dude eats, sleeps and breathes fighting. This is his life. Who am I to tell him not to?
If hes healthy and happy and ready to come back, great. But Im not looking forward to getting the s*** beat out of me for another six weeks. Merab camps are the hardest camps. I lost like 15 pounds during this one [for UFC 320]. Well see, but my gut says hes going to want to do it.
The thing with Merab is he doesnt take a lot of damage,” Wood added. “He lives his life literally [as] the fight life. When hes not in camp, hell go home for a week or two, hang out, then come right back. He trains every day like hes in fight camp. So its not really a big switch for him [to start a fight camp].
Dvalishvilis latest win over Sandhagen didnt provide many surprises to his team, Wood said. The game plan was simple: Apply pressure, close the distance and take away Sandhagens space. It worked, though Wood acknowledged the title challenger gave Team Dvalishvili a few unexpected looks early.
But in the end, there was never much concern from his team once the champ went to work.
“We knew Cory was going to be a tougher fight, Wood said. I don’t know if there’s such thing as a tough fight for Merab. Cory’s one of the best in the world and he gave us a great fight. There was some things he was doing that were making Merab think a little bit. But it does get to a point where Merab is so in control of these fights, and he’s able to figure guys out so quickly in the fight he’s got one of the best fight IQs in the business right now. His mind just works on a different level when he’s figuring out these fighters.
“But I do agree he definitely has fun out there, and again, we’re still turning that corner of becoming a finisher. … I really do think we’re going to hit that path where it’s going to be more finishes than decisions here shortly.”
That potential finishing ability, Wood said, is more about composure than power. Against Sandhagen, Dvalishvili had a chance to close the show in Round 2 after he stunned his challenger with a flurry of hard punches. But the champion defaulted back to his wrestling instincts when the opportunity presented itself, and Sandhagen was able to survive to fight an additional three rounds.
Those types of moments have only acted as confidence boosters for the team, Wood said, and are what lead the Syndicate coach to believe the future looks even bleaker for Dvalishvili’s upcoming opponents.
Merab now knows hes capable of knocking people out, Wood said. He had [Sandhagen] rocked, he was excited, he got into wrestle mode real quick. If he would have just given some space and stepped back and started unloading on him, then I think that fight gets stopped. I think were talking maybe three to five punches on the ground. It was very close.
For now, Wood hopes the next few weeks involve rest more than repetition, but experience tells him that probably wont last long. Dvalishvilis processes don’t change even when the fights are over.
Hell take a short break, go home to Georgia, and then return to the gym to start the cycle again. Its not about momentum or hype. For Dvalishvili, its just what he does.