UFC Fight Night: Yan vs. Dvalishvili Preview, Odds, Prediction

Petr Yan wants to take back his belt, and the next obstacle on that path for the Russian will be Merab Dvalishvili. The Machine from Georgia is one of the best bantamweights in the world and possibly a title contender. Analysts claim that if Dvalishvili wins here, the UFC won’t have any choice but to give him the title bout. As for Yan, he is a victim of injustice in his last two appearances, losing both via split decision, yet following strange scoring. The event takes place at the Theater at Virgin Hotels in Paradise, Nevada.

Yan vs. Dvalishvili Preview

Petr Yan (-295) suffered back-to-back losses, one against Aljamain Sterlin in the second bout against the American and the most recent against Sean O’Malley. As stated, both were via split decision, and both caused negative reactions in the MMA community. 

Yan lost the title to Sterling due to an illegal kick to the head in a match he completely dominated. After that, he defeated Cory Sandhagen without any problems before losing to Sterling in one sluggish contest where Aljo didn’t want to fight but passively wrestled, holding Yan on a few occasions and just wanting to spend time. O’Malley didn’t even celebrate after the winners’ announcement because he looked shocked. 

Yan is the whole package, having the speed, the power the cardio, and the skills. His Muay Thai is the most impressive in the division, and this guy attacks from all sorts of angles, combining legs and fists like just a few guys in the organization. The way he dismantled Urijah Faber and Jose Aldo clearly showed why he is among the best pound-for-pound fighters in the UFC. 

Merab Dvalishvili (+250) won eight in a row, and earned the chance to meet with Yan. We stated that the analysts think this is a title eliminator for the Georgian, who looked pretty impressive in his most recent fights. The hype surrounding the 32-year-old began once he beat John Dodson, and extended afterward.

He was better than Cody Statman via unanimous decision, then he knocked out Marlon Moraes, breaking into the elite echelon of the bantamweight division before beating Jose Aldo last August via unanimous decision. Merab has 11 decision victories, one via submission and three knockouts. 

His incredible stamina and endurance allowed him to take the bouts to distance. Dvalishvili is a very dominant wrestler, maybe the best in the division, along with Sterling. He takes down the rivals and simply sucks their energy out, collecting points on the scorecards, slowly closing the event and waiting for the final horn. 

Yan vs. Dvalishvili Predictions

Yan has been in these sorts of situations already, while on the other hand, Merab never had such a big fight. Also, his stamina was never tested in the championship rounds, and this will be his first experience in that area. On the other side, Yan’s four of the past five appearances saw him entering that territory. Our opinion is that the Russian has enough knowledge and skills to control Merab and his takedown attacks, as he already faced Sterling, who has the same style in the octagon. However, Merab never encountered a vicious striker like Yan, and we aren’t sure whether he can endure the former champions’ attacks and pressure. That’s the reason we go with the 30-year-old from Russia.

Pick: Petr Yan wins -295