Merab Dvalishvili is determined to stay active as he waits for his expected trilogy bout with Petr Yan to be finalised.
‘The Machine’ was set to face former two-weight UFC champion Henry Cejudo at RAF 08. However, the contest was cancelled on the day of the event after Cejudo withdrew due to injury.
That late change opened the door for a surprise replacement. Dvalishvili has now revealed he was offered a bout against UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan, but ultimately chose not to accept the matchup.
Merab Dvalishvili opens up on Arman Tsarukyan rejection after RAF 08 offer
Dvalishvili told MMA journalist Ariel Helwani on Wednesday that accepting a match with Tsarukyan would have made little sense given the circumstances. The Georgian pointed directly to the size disparity between them.
The ex-UFC bantamweight champion admitted he briefly considered the opportunity and added that he believes ‘Ahalkalakets’ was willing to compete multiple times on the same night.
However, the wrestling bout did not come to fruition as the Georgian star explained that he got “disappointed” with Tsarukyan for “throwing” Urijah Faber off the mat.
Dvalishvili stated: “He’s 2 weight classes bigger than me. And, actually, I was thinking about it, but I think I didn’t do that because of what I saw, what Arman did against the legend Urijah Faber, I was disappointed. Arman should not have thrown him out like that.”
Merab Dvalishvili set for RAF 09 debut against Frankie Edgar
Dvalishvili will instead turn his attention to RAF 09 next month. The Georgian is now scheduled to face former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar.
Both men will be making their debut appearances in the promotion.
For Edgar, the contest also marks his first outing since November 2022, adding further intrigue to an already notable event.
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