Merab Dvalishvili issues NSFW call-out of UFC rival Petr Yan after RAF Georgia win over Henry Cejudo

Merab Dvalishvili took a seemingly NSFW jibe at his archrival, reigning UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan.

Dvalishvili did so after securing an electrifying win over Olympic gold medalist freestyle wrestler Henry Cejudo. Their freestyle wrestling match headlined RAF Georgia in Tbilisi, Georgia, on July 11. 

Merab Dvalishvili beats Henry Cejudo in wrestling match at RAF Georgia

Merab Dvalishvili is a former UFC bantamweight champion. He boasts a unanimous decision victory against Henry Cejudo from their MMA clash in the UFC that transpired in 2024. 

Cejudo, who's himself a former UFC flyweight titlist and an ex-UFC bantamweight champ, had warned that his Olympic gold in wrestling would serve as a harbinger of doom for Dvalishvili in their lightweight wrestling match at RAF Georgia. 

Well, the American fighter did, initially, impress with his technique and notch an 8-0 lead against Dvalishvili. Nevertheless, the Georgian-American Dvalishvili rallied with his famed pace and relentlessness to score an 11-8 decision win at the end of their match. 

Merab Dvalishvili makes controversial NSFW call-out of Petr Yan for UFC trilogy

Merab Dvalishvili elicited thunderous applause and cheers from his compatriots and others in attendance for his freestyle wrestling showdown on home turf against Henry Cejudo. The fans at the Tbilisi Arena also stood witness to a fiery, albeit controversial, promo by the grappling savant. 

Speaking to interviewer and former UFC women's bantamweight champion Julianna Pena, Dvalishvili appeared to express his respect for Cejudo.

He even jested that he'd perhaps fight "Triple C" in a judo match next, alluding to how they've already clashed in two other combat sports, namely MMA and freestyle wrestling. Dvalishvili subsequently expressed interest in wrestling at more RAF events, particularly in Georgia. 

Upon being questioned about what's next for him, Dvalishvili answered by issuing a call-out to Yan. "The Machine" stated: 

"Next? Yes. Julianna, you won't be surprised. So, I love UFC. I love fighting. I'm grateful for RAF. But Petr Yan, come back, bro! What the h*ck?" 

Making what many later noted was a rather NSFW remark regarding Yan supposedly spending time in Thailand, Dvalishvili said, "I don't know. Something wrong with him. He lives in Thailand. Maybe he's taking wrong hormones." 

A few netizens suggested that Dvalishvili was insinuating that Yan was allegedly undergoing hormone therapy and transitioning to change his gender.

Some asserted that it was a discriminatory insinuation on the veteran fighter's part, as well as an act of possibly misrepresenting Yan's supposed gender identity.

Regardless, Dvalishvili's polarizing remarks in his call-out added fuel to the already-incendiary MMA rivalry between him and Yan. 

Dvalishvili notably defeated Yan via unanimous decision in their non-title matchup back in 2023. However, he lost his UFC bantamweight belt via unanimous decision to Yan in their rematch in December of last year. 

Russia's Yan has since been recovering after his reported back surgery, which took place after his aforementioned rematch against Dvalishvili.

The latter has been tirelessly pursuing a trilogy fight against Yan and has vowed to recapture the bantamweight belt from "No Mercy" at the earliest. 

Watch Merab Dvalishvili's call-out of UFC 135-pound titlist Petr Yan below (*comments at the 3:10:55-minute mark of the video):