Ilia Topuria congratulates Merab Dvalishvili post-UFC 320 win

Ilia Topuria has tipped his cap to fellow Georgian fighter Merab Dvalishvili after the latter’s UFC 320 victory. Dvalishvili notched the third defense of his bantamweight title across a reign that now has many referring to him as MMA’s GOAT at 135 pounds.

The 34-year-old bested Cory Sandhagen in the co-main event of the promotion’s October 4th pay-per-view offering. It was a historic outing for Dvalishvili who broke a UFC record related to takedowns that he already held going into the card at 97 takedowns overall. That record is one that the Georgian standout kept building on as Dvalishvili left the cage having recorded 117 takedowns as the dust settled on the clash with ‘Sandman’.

There was also a more localized takedown record broken in that fight as Dvalishvili set the new standard by authoring 20 takedowns within a single contest. There is also another record within the bantamweight kingpin’s reach as Dvalishvili is two wins away from tying Anderson Silva‘s record for consecutive UFC wins with ‘The Spider’ winning 16 straight bouts in the octagon.

Ilia Topuria’s congratulatory message to Merab Dvalishvili

Ilia Topuria took to his personal social media to give well wishes to the fellow Georgian UFC titleholder, as Topuria said,

“Brother, we’ve reached the point where your victories seem almost normal. But we all know how hard it is to get there. I say it with pride: you’re a living legend!!!! An example of hard work, sacrifice, and heart. Beyond the fighter, you’re an incredible person, with a soul too big for your chest. We love you, we support you, and we’re with you every step of the way.”

Merab Dvalishvili has the longest winning streak int he history of the UFC bantamweight division with an impressive run of 14 straight victories. His excellence is demonstrable but the same can be said for the unbeaten Ilia Topuria who has collected featherweight and lightweight belts in the UFC while maintaining his unbeaten professional MMA record.

The two fighters from the Caucasus Mountains stand atop the MMA mountain and it seems unclear who will knock them down from their perch at this juncture.