Athletes
Where We Stand: Bantamweight Division | January 2025
Merab Dvalishvili Reign Continues After A Dominant Performance To Retain His Belt At UFC 311
The bantamweight title fight between Merab Dvalishvili and Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 311 doubled as a great fight and a showcase for the 135-pound division.
The fast-paced, highly skilled matchup also featured all the entertainment and showmanship you’d want from top-level combatants for 25 minutes and, in the end, “The Machine” from Georgia continued his reign atop the division.
While it isn’t yet clear who will step up to challenge the marauding Georgian next, mixed martial arts fans should look forward to the next championship clash.
Champion: Merab Dvalishvili
Last Fight: Unanimous Decision Win vs Umar Nurmagomedov (1/18/2025)
Next fight: N/A
Merab Dvalishvili Post-Fight Interview | UFC 311
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Merab Dvalishvili Post-Fight Interview | UFC 311
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Outlook: Georgia’s Dvalishvili was at his swarming best in Southern California. After Umar Nurmagomedov got off to a fast start in the first two rounds, Dvalishvili stayed on the gas pedal until his challenger petered out. His nonstop attack of attempted takedowns and strikes wore on the previously undefeated challenger until there was no doubt who was taking the belt home. Melting Nurmagomedov was no easy task, but Dvalishvili seemed to take particular joy in making his opponent’s life absolutely miserable. After the fight, he didn’t have any clear callouts but has considered rematches with Petr Yan and Sean O’Malley previously. The fight with Nurmagomedov was so competitive that some are calling for them to run it back right away, butit’s not yet clear.
1) Sean O’Malley
Last Fight: Unanimous Decision Loss vs Merab Dvalishvili (9/14/2024)
Next fight: N/A
Outlook: The former champion was in attendance at UFC 311, although in a more muted capacity than previously. There was no post-fight faceoff in the Octagon after Dvalishvili kept the crown he took from O’Malley at Noche UFC, but “Suga” remains very much in the mix for the next title shot. Whether O’Malley needs to win another fight against a top contender is not clear, but if so, a rematch with Petr Yan makes a lot of sense in that framework.
2) Petr Yan
Last Fight: Unanimous Decision Win vs Deiveson Figueiredo (11/23/2024)
Next fight: N/A
Outlook: After going two-and-a-half years without a win, the former bantamweight champion got back on track in a big way in 2024. Wins over Song Yadong and Deiveson Figueiredo re-cemented Yan as one of the top 135ers in the world, and he doesn’t feel too far away from another shot at gold. Two of the three men who beat him in the Octagon, however, are the two ranked above him at the moment. He likely needs another win before getting the shot, and thatopportunity could come in a fight against Umar Nurmagomedov or a rematch with Cory Sandhagen or Sean O’Malley.
3) Umar Nurmagomedov
Last Fight: Unanimous Decision Loss vs Merab Dvalishvili (1/18/2025)
Next fight: N/A
Outlook: While Umar Nurmagomedov started his first title fight brightly, taking the first two rounds on two of three scorecards, he wilted to Dvalishvili’s pressure in the championship rounds. That’s nothing to hang one’s head about, though. Nurmagomedov is clearly good enough to compete with the best at 135 pounds, a point many believed even before he bested Cory Sandhagen in August 2024. Nurmagomedov might’ve done well enough to get a rematch for the belt, although that isn’t a guarantee by any means. However, he is now entrenched in the title picture, which means getting a fight against a top contender should not be as difficult as it might have been when he was climbing the rankings.
4) Cory Sandhagen
Last Fight: Unanimous Decision Loss vs Umar Nurmagomedov (8/3/2024)
Next fight: N/A
Outlook: Sandhagen is in a bit of a holding pattern after losing to Umar Nurmagomedov in Abu Dhabi. The result snapped his three-fight winning streak and put his title shot hopes on the back burner. He does have the advantage of being the highest ranked fighter to have not already lost to the current champion, but he likely needs to get his hand raised at least one more time before getting a shot. A fight against a new face in the division like Deiveson Figueiredo is probably his highest-profile opportunity unless a highly anticipated fight against O’Malley materializes.
5) Deiveson Figueiredo
Last Fight: Unanimous Decision Loss vs Petr Yan (11/23/2024)
Next fight: N/A
Outlook: “Deus Da Guerra” saw his hopes for a second UFC belt delayed when he landed on the wrong side of a decision against Petr Yan in Macau. The 37-year-old had a strong start to his bantamweight era with wins over Cody Garbrandt and Marlon “Chito” Vera, but he now likely needs to string together a couple wins at minimum to get into the title conversation properly. Time isn’t on his side, but Figueiredo remains a dark horse threat on the bantamweight scene.
In the Mix: Marlon Vera, Song Yadong, Mario Bautista
Outlook: As deep and talented as bantamweight is right now, there isn’t really a rising threat from outside the Top 5 at the moment. Marlon “Chito” Vera and Song Yadong probably have the best chances, although they are both coming off losses. Song has a great opportunity to get back on the right track against former double-champ Henry Cejudo in mid-February, but he is still several wins away from the title picture. Same with Vera, who lost three of his last four.
Mario Bautista finally broke into the Top 10 after stringing together a seven-fight winning streak. However, his performance against José Aldo drew heavy criticism and likely cooled his stock for the time being. That said, he should be due for another ranked test in the first half of 2025, and all it takes is one standout performance to get the engines roaring again.
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