{"id":363391,"date":"2025-12-23T08:14:05","date_gmt":"2025-12-23T08:14:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/363391\/"},"modified":"2025-12-23T08:14:05","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T08:14:05","slug":"merab-dvalishvili-crowned-fighter-of-the-year-after-wild-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/363391\/","title":{"rendered":"Merab Dvalishvili Crowned Fighter Of The Year After Wild 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former UFC bantamweight kingpin Merab Dvalishvili has reacted after being chosen by MMA Junkie as the 2025 Male Fighter of the Year.<\/p>\n

Dvalishvili started the year on a high note by securing a unanimous decision win over Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 311<\/a>. A few months later, at UFC 316, he locked horns with Sean O\u2019Malley<\/a> in a rematch and submitted \u2018Suga\u2019 in round three of the title fight.<\/p>\n

For his third title defense, the Georgian fighter took on Cory Sandhagen and cruised to another unanimous decision win at UFC 320<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month at UFC 323, Dvalishvili, in an attempt to create history by defending a UFC belt four times in one year, locked horns with Petr Yan<\/a> in a rematch. This time, things did not go as planned, with Yan playing the spoiler by securing a decision victory and dethroning \u2018The Machine.\u2019 Despite the defeat, Dvalishvili has been one of the most active fighters and champions in 2025 and was chosen by the popular MMA Page, MMA Junkie<\/a>, as its 2025 Male Fighter of the Year.<\/p>\n

On Instagram, the page posted some of the highlight moments from Dvalishvili\u2019s career and captioned the post:<\/p>\n

\u201cMerab Dvalishvili is our Male Fighter of the Year! \ud83c\udfc6 The former UFC bantamweight champion had such a big lead in the race that he maintained it despite closing an unforgettable 2025 with a loss.\u201d<\/p>\n

Check out the post<\/a> below:<\/p>\n

Merab Dvalishvili reacts <\/p>\n

After being chosen by MMA Junkie as the 2025 Male Fighter of the Year, Merab Dvalishvili reacted, commenting:<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks so much \u2026 I am truly blessed and appreciate all of you!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Nina Marie-Daniele also reacted to the post, congratulating \u2018The Machine.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cCongratulations @merab.dvalishvili well deserved \ud83d\ude4c\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman<\/a> also chimed in:<\/p>\n

\u201cGuy goes for 4 title defenses in the year against all st*ds in their primes. I think it\u2019s a no-brainer!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u2018The Machine\u2019 plans to run it back with Petr Yan in 2026 and complete their trilogy, which now stands at 1-1. Recently, Dvalishvili was seen sparring<\/a> with Ilia Topuria, which may indicate that he is looking for a quick turnaround to reclaim his lost glory.<\/p>\n