"Everyone making this so complicated" - Aljamain Sterling and Merab Dvalishvili retaliates against Dana White's harsh criticism
Aljamain Sterling and Merab Dvalishvili have made it clear that they refuse to fight one another, prioritizing their friendship with one another. Following criticism from UFC President Dana White, the bantamweight teammates took to Twitter to show that they remain on the same page.
'The Machine' initially tweeted, suggesting the pair should be the only contenders considered for Sean O'Malley's first title defense, stating:
"I don't get what the problem is . There is no question of who should fight for title now - It's Aljo or me."
'Funk Master' quote tweeted Dvalishvili showing full support:
"Everyone making this so complicated 🤣 Either way, I am with you brother ✊🏾"
Check out the tweets from Merab Dvalishvili and Aljamain Sterling below:
While Merab Dvalishvili recently underwent hand surgery, he has since shared that he will be ready to fight at UFC 296 in December, when Sean O'Malley plans to defend his title for the first time. Meanwhile, Aljamain Sterling wants to rematch 'Suga', however, he has also shared that he does not plan to return to action until 2024.
O'Malley has suggested that he would rather face Marlon 'Chito' Vera, who handed him the only loss of his career at UFC 252, than Dvalishvili. 'The Machine' is on a nine-fight win streak and last entered the octagon when he dominated Petr Yan for five rounds at UFC Fight Night 221.
What did Dana White say about Aljamain Sterling and Merab Dvalishvili?
Merab Dvalishvili has shared that he is willing to wait for his teammate Aljamain Sterling to receive a rematch before fighting for the bantamweight title. Speaking at the Dana White's Contender Series post-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White discussed his stance, stating:
"I hate it. Why did you even get into this sport if that's your mentality and the way that you think? 'I don't even want the title, I don't even want the championship. We're friends, we're this, we're that.' You can be friends with everybody in this business, there's a lot of nice people in this business, a lot of good people."
White continued:
"This is not about friendship, this is about finding out who the best in the world is and if you don't want to find out who the best in the world is, this is not the place for you. You should be somewhere else, there's plenty of places to fight where they don't give a s**t what you do."
Check out Dana White's comments below:
While White's comments led many fans to believe that Dvalishvili may be cut from the roster, that is unlikely to happen. It appears, however, that 'The Machine' may have to wait for a title shot despite being the No.2-ranked bantamweight contender, with only Sterling ahead of him.