*NEWS FLASH * Nevada Athletic Commission has
cancelled my fight against Raoni Barcelos for December 5th . They
want me to fight only a ranked fighter. I am
Ready .. Hoping they find me an opponent @UFC pic.twitter.com/J6rx4Au9hl— Merab “The Machine” Dvalishvili (@MerabDvalishvil)
November 19, 2020
Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on
your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the
ESPN app. A hot
Ultimate Fighting Championship prospect is not getting an
opportunity he hoped for after all. Coach Ray Longo
first spoke about the booking between Merab
Dvalishvili (12-4) and Raoni
Barcelos (16-1) at bantamweight at
UFC on ESPN 19. At the time, Barcelos was stepping in for
Cody
Stamann, who pulled out for COVID-19 related reasons.
Dvalishvili posted on Twitter
on Thursday that the fight was off, but he claimed it was due to
rankings and the commission. MMA
Junkie has since clarified that this is not the case, but
rather that Barcelos is being kept out of action as he was
suspended following his bout with Khalid
Taha.
The Nevada State Athletic Commission typically releases suspension
information for UFC events, but the Nov. 7 UFC on ESPN 17 event
that Barcelos competed at was not released. At the time, Barcelos’
suspension time is currently unknown, nor is whether the Brazilian
suffered an injury during his three-round battle with Taha. It is
also uncertain whether the promotion will keep Dvalishvili on the
event and find a replacement, or if he will be scheduled on a
subsequent card.
Barcelos extended his winning streak to nine with he took home a
thrilling decision win and a “Fight of the Night” bonus against
Taha in November. The Brazilian has yet to taste defeat inside the
Octagon, winning all five including stoppages in his first three.
The finishes came over Kurt
Holobaugh, Chris
Gutierrez and Carlos
Huachin, and since those, he has scored decision wins over
Said
Nurmagomedov and the aforementioned Taha.
Dvalishvili has also won his last five UFC bouts, but all five have
come by unanimous verdict. Before the quintet of 15-minute nods,
the Georgian lost his first two inside the Octagon. First, Frankie
Saenz won a
controversial split decision over him, and then Ricky Simon
put him to sleep at the final bell. Simon’s technical submission
guillotine choke is the latest possible stoppage in any UFC
non-title fight, and it remains the lone stoppage loss for “The
Machine.” Dvalishvili has racked up wins over names like John Dodson,
Casey
Kenney and Brad Katona
since joining the roster.
UFC on ESPN 19 goes down on Dec. 5 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas,
with a headliner pitting Jack
Hermansson against late replacement Kevin
Holland at middleweight. An additional significant matchup on
the card sees former light heavyweight title challenger Ovince St.
Preux try to become the first man to defeat Jamahal
Hill.
