Merab Dvalishvili passes on Umar Nurmagomedov and reveals the bout he wants for 2026

While his immediate attention is on Yan, who is looking to complete his comeback by reclaiming the belt, Dvalishvili has started to consider what might come after their rematch.

Speaking with Aaron Bronsteter of Sportsnet, ‘The Machine’ looked past the Russian contender and pointed towards Aiemann Zahabi, currently ranked seventh in the division.

Naturally, that does not fit with what Nurmagomedov’s camp had in mind. They are hoping a win over Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 324 will be enough to book a rematch early in the year.

“I think the next challenge could be Zahabi. He is coming from a long win streak.

“I would like to fight a fresh opponent, of course. Zahabi is coming from a long win streak. That would be a good fight,” Dvalishvili stated.

Zahabi’s seven-fight win streak includes an impressive recent victory over former title challenger Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera at UFC Vancouver.

Nobody is calling out Nurmagomedov just yet. Even when the Georgian star was asked who else might challenge for the belt in 2026, Umar was not one of the names that came up.

“Song Yadong is fighting Sean O’Malley. If Song Yadong will win this fight, I may fight him. We will see.

“Our division, there is a lot of fights. The guy who fights Henry Cejudo now (Payton Talbott), maybe he will be in the line,” he concluded.

Merab Dvalishvili may already hold the title of UFC’s bantamweight GOAT

Dvalishvili clearly has big plans for the year ahead, but there are many who feel he has already done enough to stake his claim as the greatest bantamweight of all time.

After a record-breaking 2025 that saw him clear out much of the division, many now place ‘The Machine’ ahead of names like Dominick Cruz and Aljamain Sterling in bantamweight history.

Dvalishvili does not label himself as the greatest, a humble stance that fans have widely respected, but more and more voices within the sport are starting to back him.

Alongside former champion Sterling backing his case, UFC president Dana White has also shown support for Dvalishvili’s standing in the sport.

“Absolutely,” the UFC boss replied when asked whether he sees Dvalishvili as the bantamweight GOAT following UFC 320 in October.