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Dvalishvili is scheduled to defend his bantamweight title against Cory Sandhagen in the co-main event at Noche UFC on Oct. 4 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Donchenko, who recently secured his UFC contract, believes Dvalishvili can finish Sandhagen.
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Donchenko noted that Dvalishvili has often been criticized for the lack of finishes on his resume. However, Donchenko is confident that “The Machine” will finish Sandhagen at UFC 320. While Donchenko acknowledged Sandhagen’s unorthodox skillset, the Ukrainian is confident that Dvalishvili will stop “The Sandman.” Donchenko also expressed his admiration s for Dvalishvili’s feared gas tank and mental toughness.
Donchenko: Merab is ‘Another Beast’
“Merab can finish this guy. Everyone say he is just decision-decision, but no, he can finish this guy,” Donchenko told Home of Fight. “And I’m pretty sure he’ll finish. Cory, he is good unorthodox striker and grappler too. But Merab is really another human, another beast. Mentally he is so tough, I don’t know what can happen to break Merab [mentally]. And not only mental, his cardio is just like talent from God.”
While Dvalishvili is riding the longest winning streak (12) in UFC bantamweight history, the Georgian has only finished two of his opponents. Dvalishvili won the title with a dominant decision win over Sean O’Malley last year and has since defended it against Umar Nurmagomedov and in a rematch against O’Malley. Meanwhile, Sandhagen has only lost to Nurmagomedov in his last five outings but rebounded from the loss with a win over former flyweight champ Deiveson Figueiredo in his last outing.
Donchenko earned his contract by winning “The Ultimate Fighter 33” in the welterweight bracket with a first-round knockout over Rodrigo Sezinando at Noche UFC.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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