Merab Dvalishvili Hopes to Train With Conor McGregor for His Potential UFC White House Outing

Merab Dvalishvili is on an absolute roll. The reigning bantamweight champion is set to make his third title defense at UFC 320 in October against Cory Sandhagen, in what promises to be an all-out barnburner. But he isn’t stopping there. The Georgian powerhouse is already planning a quick turnaround later this year to face former kingpin Petr Yan. That is some serious confidence from Dvalishvili, who not only believes he will beat Sandhagen but also expects to come out completely unscathed and ready for another top-name clash right after. But there is a twist to this story. Dvalishvili has recently expressed a desire to slug it out with a surprising training partner in the form of Conor McGregor, a man who hasn’t stepped inside the Octagon in more than four years.

Merab Dvalishvili Hints at Conor McGregor’s Serious Plans for an Octagon Comeback

For those unaware, McGregor last stepped into the Octagon in 2021 at UFC 264, where he suffered a broken leg during his trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier. While there were talks of a return against Michael Chandler at UFC 303, the Irishman withdrew due to a pinky toe injury, and no official update has followed since.

Adding to the drama, BKFC President David Feldman recently revealed that McGregor will make his bare-knuckle debut against the winner of Mike Perry vs. Jeremy Stephens, who headline BKFC 82 in New Jersey. However, that seems highly unlikely given his exclusive contract with the UFC. 

On a more believable note, the former double champ is targeting a marquee return in 2026, at a high-profile event reportedly planned at the White House to celebrate July 4. With Dana White ruling out Jon Jones for the card, speculation has grown that McGregor could headline the historic event. Interestingly, he may have some support from the reigning 135lbs kingpin. 

During a recent appearance on the Full Send Podcast, Merab Dvalishvili shared details of a surprise FaceTime call with McGregor while he was with one of the Irishman’s friends during the UFC Fight Night event in Shanghai. 

“I think he’s really motivated,” Dvalishvili said. “Actually, when I was in China, I met his friends and we FaceTimed, and he asked me if we could train.”

He added, “I said, ‘Let’s go, Conor. I would like to train with you.’ Now I have a fight, I’m not gonna go (anywhere). After my fight, I wanna fight again this year. After, I can go visit him.”

ALSO READ: Sean O’Malley Admits Making the Mistake of Emulating Conor McGregor a Bit Too Much

“We both follow each other on Instagram. Hopefully, we can do it. I’m excited for him. I would like to see him in a White House fight,” the reigning champ concluded. 

Merab Dvalishvili Vows to Punish Umar Nurmagomedov in Rematch After Feeling Disrespected

Apart from this, the reigning bantamweight is also focused on Umar Nurmagomedov. Moreover, Dvalishvili didn’t hold back when talking about the possibility of running it back with the Dagestani. For the unversed, ‘The Machine’ handed Nurmagomedov his first professional loss at UFC 311 in January, rallying to win by unanimous decision. Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov looks to bounce back against Mario Bautista at UFC 321 in October. During the Full Send podcast, Dvalishvili didn’t mince words when addressing a potential rematch.

“If he deserves the title fight again, if we fought again, I will destroy him,” Dvalishvili said of Nurmagomedov. “This time, I will beat the sh*t out of him. I won, so now I can talk about this. I was injured, my back was killing me, and then I had an infection in my leg, and that was a very stressful training camp.”

January 18, 2025, Inglewood, California, USA: MERAB DVALISHVILI 19-4-0 of Tbilisi, Georgia defeats UMAR NURMAGOMEDOV 18-1-0 of Kizilyurt, Russia by unanimous decision 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 during UFC 311 at the Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California Inglewood USA – ZUMAo117 20250118_zsp_o117_054 Copyright: xMikaelxOnax

Dvalishvili went on to explain where the tension between them started. “Umar, I knew him a long time, and I always showed him my respect, and as men we don’t care about anything else – we just want respect,” Dvalishvili said. 

Although the reigning champion acknowledged Nurmagomedov’s skills, he also pointed out the advantage of having Khabib’s backing. “I was always fighting the next contenders. I got here for my work. Umar he’s a good fighter, but he got pushed because of his cousin (Khabib) that hyped him. So when he disrespected me, I was mad about that.”

Merab Dvalishvili says Umar Nurmagomedov made it personal with disrespect 😳

“I always showed him my respect, and as men we don’t care about anything else, we just want respect. I got here for my work, but he got pushed because of his cousin, and that hyped him. I was mad when… pic.twitter.com/Z1uuvEKswZ

— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) August 28, 2025

Dvalishvili also emphasized the depth of talent in the division but noted that not everyone has the same platform or support as Umar. “There are other guys who work very hard, but because they don’t have a cousin like Khabib, they don’t give him a title fight. He was disrespecting me, especially on Twitter and the internet. Yeah, I was very mad at him. That was personal for sure.”