Merab Dvalishvili is stuck in limbo for a targeted 2026 UFC trilogy with Petr Yan, but he won’t be idle as he prepares to headline a freestyle wrestling main event against Henry Cejudo in Georgia.
Dvalishvili said he has yet to receive any confirmation on when the Yan fight will be booked after an initial delay caused by an injury to the former champion. “I guess I’m not fighting in August and I haven’t heard anything from Petr Yan,” Dvalishvili said. “I’m just waiting for him and I’m praying he’s coming back soon. I don’t know.”
In the meantime, Dvalishvili continues to compete in freestyle wrestling for RAF and is scheduled to face Cejudo in the main event of an international event in his home country. The two were previously booked for an earlier RAF show before Cejudo withdrew for undisclosed reasons. Dvalishvili has already logged a RAF win over Frankie Edgar in his debut.
The Georgian contender recently dealt with a broken nose suffered in training and then again in a wrestling match, but he insists it won’t be an issue. “My nose is good now,” he said. “It’s healed up. But if it happens, I don’t care anymore. I’ll be fine.”
Dvalishvili acknowledged the stakes of competing at home. “This is pressure for sure,” he said. “I haven’t competing in my country since 2010. It’s going to be exciting but maybe a little bit stressful, too, because I can’t lose [in front of] my people. It’s going to be hard. Who knows?”
