UFC 298 Results: Merab Dvalishvili Demands 10-Round Fight After Statement Win

A massive bantamweight fight took place during the UFC 298 pay-per-view.

Zain Bando | Feb 17, 2024

UFC 298 Results: Merab Dvalishvili Demands 10-Round Fight After Statement Win /

Henry Cejudo concluded his brief retirement Saturday night at UFC 298, taking on Merab Dvalishvili in a bantamweight contender bout.

In a back-and-forth affair, Dvalishvili weathered an early Cejudo storm to win the fight by unanimous decision (29-28, 3x). Dvalishvili controlled the majority of the second round, nearly securing a front-end guillotine in the closing seconds.

Round 3 showed more of the same, as Dvalishvili used his wrestling to control the pace of the closing five minutes.

Dvalishvili, fired up in front of the sold-out Honda Center crowd, let it be known what was next.

“I was working so hard,” Dvalishvili said in his post-fight interview. ”Nothing easy.”

Dvalishvili called out Sean O’Malley and requested, while unrealistic, a 10-round bout for the bantamweight strap.

“Whoever will be champion, I don’t care,” Dvalishvili said.

Cejudo entered the fight on the heels of a UFC bantamweight title loss to Aljamain Sterling, keeping himself right in the thick of the bantamweight title picture.

Cejudo said pre-fight that getting back to the top of the division is his biggest goal before he officially hangs up the gloves. The former double-champion did promise retirement with a loss, which he was unable to clarify immediately following the result.

It was Dvalishvili’s 10th-straight win dating back five years, as he was discovered by Dana White as part of his “Lookin’ For a Fight” series, making him one of the most successful fighters to come off the show.

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Published Feb 17, 2024

ZAIN BANDO

Zain Bando is a writer for MMA Knockout, part of the Sports Illustrated/Minute Media umbrella. He has covered combat sports since 2019 for notable outlets BJPenn.com and FanSided MMA. He also co-hosts a podcast called "The MMA Outsiders," part of the Empty The Bench Podcast Network, which airs Tuesday nights at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT. A Chicago suburban native, Bando has been enthralled with MMA since 2006 and has been fortunate to attend some of the most high-profile events in the sport's history, both as a fan and media member, including UFC 264, Bellator 297 and Kayla Harrison's PFL MMA debut. He is excited to take the next step in his combat sports writing journey and looks forward to continuing his following of the fight game for years to come. Bando can be reached via email at zainbando99@gmail.com or by social media @zainbando99