Merab Dvalishvili Vs. Petr Yan Rematch Announced

UFC Bantamweight Champion Merab Dvalishvili will defend his title against Petr Yan in a rematch at UFC 323 on December 6. 

Dvalishvili won their first bout in March 2023 via a unanimous decision. Since then, the two fighters have gone from strength to strength. Merab won the title against Sean O’Malley at UFC 306. He has made three successful defenses, beating Umar Nurmagomedov, O’Malley again and Cory Sandhagen at UFC 320 in his last fight.

Meanwhile, Yan has won three on the spin, having defeated Marcus McGhee in his last fight at UFC Abu Dhabi in July. Yan has said that he was not 100 percent for the first Merab fight, while the champion knows a win sets the record for the most title defenses in a calendar year at 4. 

In chief support, Alexandre Pantoja defends his flyweight title against Joshua Van. Pantoja won the belt after beating Brandon Moreno at UFC 290. He has defended it four times, beating Brandon Royval, Steve Erceg, Kai Asakura and Kai Kara-France, respectively. Meanwhile, Van is also in good form. He defeated Rei Tsuruya at UFC 313, Bruno Silva at UFC 316, and Royval at UFC 317 to secure his shot at the title. 

The Approach

Dvalishvili’s approach will remain largely unchanged, that being to use his non-stop pace and chain wrestling. The champion’s goal is to exhaust Yan by forcing him to react constantly for twenty-five minutes. Dvalishvili will use a sequence of entries (single-legs, double-legs, clinch-trips) even if the initial attempt fails. For example, when Yan successfully sprawls on a double-leg, Merab will not back out; instead, he will instantly transition to a body lock, push Yan against the cage, and attempt trips or knees, using Yan’s own defensive energy against him. Merab’s cardio ensures he will maintain this pace for five rounds.

Yan’s key to victory lies in making adjustments to counter Merab’s pressure. In the first fight, Yan was constantly on the defensive, spending too much energy defending takedowns he ultimately could not stop. For the rematch, Yan must increase his striking volume and control the center of the Octagon, preventing Merab from simply running him backwards. For example, Yan will need to utilize a stiffer jab and powerful body kicks to intercept Merab’s entries.

Current Card

Merab Dvalishvili vs. Petr Yan

Grant Dawson vs. Manuel Torres

Alexandre Pantoja vs. Joshua Van

Jan Blachowicz vs. Bogdan Guskov

Henry Cejudo vs. Payton Talbott

Brandon Moreno vs. Tatsuro Taira

Maycee Barber vs. Karine Silva

Mansur Abdul-Malik vs. Antonio Trocoli

Chris Duncan vs. Terrance McKinney

Nazim Sadykhov vs. Fares Ziam