Former UFC champion Dvalishvili and PFL's Nurmagomedov brawl in Abu Dhabi lobby

The lobby brawl

On Wednesday evening, 11 November, a confrontation broke out in the lobby of a luxury hotel in Abu Dhabi between Merab Dvalishvili, a former UFC bantamweight champion, and Usman Nurmagomedov, the current PFL lightweight champion. A video that spread online shows the 28-year-old Russian approaching the 35-year-old Georgian-born American from behind, accompanied by members of his team, and slapping him. Dvalishvili reacted immediately, and within seconds the exchange had widened into a general melee involving members of both camps. In a separate video, Dvalishvili said he was giving an interview about RAF when Nurmagomedov and his friends came from behind and began hitting him and a young friend, and that security held him back while they were kicked on the ground. Another clip shows a taller man in a black top and cap, who may be Nurmagomedov, striking Dvalishvili in the face. The two groups eventually separated, but no source says how long the fight lasted.

Dvalishvili's response

Afterwards Dvalishvili posted a video to his personal TikTok account showing his bloodied face as he received first aid. He called Nurmagomedov and his group "snakes" and described the attack as a sneaky way to fight.

“What kind of fighters are you? What kind of man does something like that? If you want to try it, let's do it the right way.”

The message made clear that the matter would be settled in the ring. Ilia Topuria, a UFC champion in two weight classes who is friendly with Dvalishvili, posted the video of the incident on X and launched a sharp attack on Nurmagomedov and his team.

A rivalry that predates Wednesday

Relations between the two camps had been strained for some time. Dvalishvili beat Umar Nurmagomedov, Usman's older brother, for the bantamweight title in January 2025, after calling him spoiled beforehand. Last July, before an RAF event, another episode occurred, and one account says Dvalishvili slapped Ahmed Gadzhimagomedov, a friend of Usman Nurmagomedov, backstage at an RAF event in Georgia that summer. Islam Makhachev, the UFC champion and close friend of the Nurmagomedov brothers, said that earlier dispute had effectively set off Wednesday's clash. In a post, he wrote:

“Why were you silent when Merab hit a fighter from Dagestan for no reason and insulted his honour?”

He also said Dvalishvili had started the events of the day, pointing to an earlier incident in Georgia.

Saturday's RAF card

Dvalishvili is scheduled to fight Brazilian Marlon Moraes, a former UFC title challenger, at the Real American Freestyle (RAF) event in the United Arab Emirates on Saturday, 14 November. RAF is a freestyle wrestling organisation with current and former UFC stars in its lineup, and the bout falls three days after the lobby brawl. Articles say Dvalishvili is preparing as planned despite the injuries he sustained on Wednesday. Umar Nurmagomedov is also booked on the same card, against American Uraiah Faber. No police or event-organiser response has been reported so far.