Merab Dvalishvili doesn’t shy away from wearing his Georgian nationality on his sleeve. The reigning bantamweight king has put his national identity on display multiple times by walking out with the Georgian flag. Dvalishvili also takes pride in the noteworthy achievements of his fellow countrymen.
“The Machine” was happy for his compatriot Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who was part of the latest UEFA Champions League-winning Paris Saint-Germain F.C. (PSG) squad. Dvalishvili penned a little congratulatory note for his countryman and lauded the entire PSG squad.
Merab Dvalishvili Takes Pride in Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s UEFA Champions League Victory
Dvalishvili’s brotherly relationship with the former UFC Featherweight Champion Ilia Topuria also bears testimony to his pride for fellow countrymen. Topuria was born in Germany and currently resides in Spain, but his Georgian roots made Dvalishvili his all-weather friend.
Dvalishvili and Topuria have done their part to take Georgia to the top of the MMA world in their respective divisions. Recently, the reigning bantamweight champ rejoiced as another Georgian, Kvaratskhelia, waved the flag of victory in soccer. His side, PSG, won the latest edition of the prestigious UEFA Champions League.
PSG dominated their opponents, Inter Milan, for most of the 90 minutes in the recently concluded finals of the tournament. The French side scored five times in the match while maintaining a clean sheet, annihilating the Italian soccer club.
Dvalishvili’s pride was magnified by the fact that his compatriot, Kvaratskhelia, also scored a crucial goal in the 73rd minute of the match, advancing PSG’s score to 4-0. The noted Moroccan star, Achref Hakimi, drew first blood by putting PSG ahead in the 12th minute of the match.
Desire Doue, a Frenchman, followed Hakimi’s lead by scoring the next two goals in the 20th and 63rd minutes. Kvaratskhelia and Sennt Mayulu put the final nails in Inter Milan’s coffin by scoring two more goals in the 73rd and 86th minutes of the clash.
Dvalishvili shared two Instagram stories to congratulate Kvaratskhelia and the entire PSG squad. The first was dedicated to Kvaratskhelia’s noteworthy achievement of winning the UEFA Champions League.
“So proud of you, my brother @kvara7 [Kvaratskhelia’s Instagram username]”, said Dvalishvili.
The reigning bantamweight congratulated Kvaratskhelia along with the entire PSG side in the second installment of his story. His words read, “Congratulations @kvara7 and your team @psg.”
After Kvaratskhelia’s notable triumph in the world of soccer, Dvalishvili has his next opportunity lined up to fly the flag of Georgia over the MMA world once more. A victory in his upcoming title rematch against Sean O’Malley at UFC 316 is expected to solidify Georgia’s position on the map of world MMA even more.