Merab Dvalishvili Is Still in Custody in Abu Dhabi. Usman Nurmagomedov Has Been Barred From Saturday’s Event.
Merab Dvalishvili was supposed to sit in front of cameras in Abu Dhabi on Thursday and talk about wrestling Marlon Moraes. He did not show up, because according to people close to him he is still in police custody.
What the Police Have Actually Said
The Abu Dhabi General Police issued a statement confirming that eight people were arrested over a fight at a hotel entrance, which it said followed earlier disputes between them. Two more people were arrested for filming the fight. The National reported that all 10 were referred to the Public Prosecution.
That is the confirmed part. Here is what is not confirmed: the police statement does not name anyone, and it has not been established publicly whether Dvalishvili or Usman Nurmagomedov were among the eight. No charges against any individual have been detailed publicly. Neither Nurmagomedov nor the UFC has commented.
Video that circulated Wednesday appears to show an altercation in the lobby area of the Yas Hilton, where Dvalishvili had been doing a promotional interview. Dvalishvili posted images of cuts on his face. Beyond that, the accounts come from the two camps, and they do not agree.
The Two Versions
Zviad Lazishvili, whose brother Saba was also detained, said in a video that “unfortunately, my brother Saba and Merab, both of them are in jail up until now.” He said the pair “were just defending themselves, and they had no other choice but to fight and fight back,” and that they might be held about 48 hours before a judge decides what happens next.
Islam Makhachev publicly took the other side, arguing that Dvalishvili started the sequence months ago in Georgia, where Dvalishvili struck Dagestani wrestler Ahmed Gadzhimagomedov backstage at a Real American Freestyle event in July. “What happened today was started by Merab in his own homeland,” Makhachev wrote.
Ilia Topuria called Nurmagomedov and the men with him “absolute cowards.”
None of that is evidence. This feud has been running since Dvalishvili beat Usman’s brother Umar for the UFC bantamweight title at UFC 311 in January 2025, and everyone talking has a side.
RAF Made the Only Call It Could
The clearest signal of how seriously the promotion is treating this came from Chad Bronstein, the Real American Freestyle co-owner and CEO, who confirmed Nurmagomedov is out of Saturday’s card regardless of anything else.
“And obviously, Usman will not be attending our event on Saturday night,” Bronstein said. He added that RAF is working with UAE authorities to get Dvalishvili released and that “Merab is doing well.”
Nurmagomedov was never booked to compete at the event. Barring him from the building anyway, before any legal process has run, is a promotion deciding it does not want him anywhere near the arena.
Saturday Is Now a Guess
RAF Abu Dhabi goes Saturday at Etihad Arena, headlined by Khamzat Chimaev against Chris Weidman. Two matches on it are in doubt: Dvalishvili against Moraes, and Umar Nurmagomedov against Urijah Faber. Bronstein said he did not know yet whether either would happen.
Faber, asked about it at the press conference, joked that the whole thing was a plan to avoid fighting him and said he would wrestle somebody on Saturday regardless.
For context on the principals: Dvalishvili is 35, Georgian and American, 21-6, and a former UFC bantamweight champion who lost the belt to Petr Yan last December and lost the trilogy fight to Yan in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 24. Nurmagomedov is 28, Russian, 22-0 with one no-contest, and the PFL lightweight champion.
A hotel lobby in Abu Dhabi turned a grudge into a prosecutor’s file. Whatever Saturday’s card ends up looking like is the least important thing about it.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
