RIO DE JANEIRO — Deiveson Figueiredo believes Merab Dvalishvili deserves to be called the greatest bantamweight of all time—but that doesn’t mean he’s unbeatable.
Ahead of his fight with Montel Jackson
at UFC Rio on Saturday, Figueiredo gave props to Dvalishvili days after his UFC 320 title bout victory over Cory Sandhagen. It was Dvalishvili’s championship defense in a row and 14th straight victory overall.
Figueiredo, a former UFC flyweight champion, looks to keep climbing the ranks at 135 pounds and set up a fight with Dvalishvili for the chance to become a two-division champion.
“He’s been doing an excellent job,” Figueiredo told MMA Fighting. “We can see he’s almost tied with the best in terms of title defenses in the organization. I give him that credit, yes. And for me, it would be a pleasure to fight him.”
Figueiredo inserted his name in the conversation for a shot at the 135-pound belt with a trio of wins over Rob Font, Cody Garbrandt, and Marlon Vera between 2023 and 2024, but then lost a decision to ex-champion Petr Yan. Six months later, he injured his knee against Sandhagen and saw the American get the crack at UFC gold.
“I always tell myself that whenever I lose it’s because I made some mistake in my life, you know?” Figueiredo said. “Between the Petr Yan and Cory fights, I made some mistakes. Against Cory, I came in dealing with serious injuries, and even so I still fought and didn’t let the fight get cancelled.
“Now, on Saturday, I want to go in 100 percent, show what I’m capable of and get that win. And of course, I’ll definitely ask for a title shot — especially because, among the big names in the division, I’m the only one who hasn’t fought Merab yet. I hope I get that opportunity. … If I go in there and deliver a great performance, that could get me a title shot. That’s what I’m after.”
Dvalishvili’s current winning streak includes the likes of Jose Aldo, Henry Cejudo, Marlon Moraes, Sean O’Malley and Umar Nurmagomedov, and he hasn’t tasted defeat since his first two octagon appearances against Frankie Saenz and Ricky Simon.
“The key [to beating Dvalishvili] is not being timid,” Figueiredo said. “Be yourself and make him back up, you know? Make him feel it, make him realize that on the other side there’s also someone who can hurt him.”
Figueiredo turns 38 in December, but watching Alex Pereira regain his UFC light heavyweight belt at that age — and others like Glover Teixeira do it despite being much older — gives him inspiration.
“I just heard about Poatan’s [age] now, but I’ve always looked up to Glover Teixeira,” Figueiredo said. “A guy who became champion even at [42], that motivates me even more. I know I can do it. I can fight for and win the belt up until I’m 40.”
One thing Figueiredo refuses to do to try and speed up his rise to the top is talk trash at his opponents. Back in the same arena where he lost his UFC belt to Brandon Moreno, an opponent he tried to engage verbally like never before, Figueiredo regrets acting that way.
“It was too much information in my head, and I was never really that kind of guy,” Figueiredo said. “I let myself get carried away by it. But I’m here now, and I’m sure there’s still time to fix that. What I want most now is to step into the octagon and show what I do best. … Every day, every month, every year, I try to get better. That’s the most important thing, realizing when you’re wrong and working to improve. That’s what I’m doing.”
