'I do record everything': The told and untold stories of Merab Dvalishvili

Editor's Note: This communicative was published June 6, anterior to Merab Dvalishvili's 2nd bantamweight rubric defense, a third-round submission triumph implicit Sean O'Malley astatine UFC 316.

IN FEBRUARY 2021, UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili made 1 of the dumbest decisions of his beingness during 1 of the biggest snowstorms to deed Long Island, New York, successful a decade. His coach, Ray Longo, told the full Serra-Long Fight Team that the gym was closed for 2 days. Stay home. With grooming canceled, Dvalishvili went connected a tally astir a adjacent park. When he'd finished, helium decided to person himself a bully small crystal bath, close determination successful the lake.

"I don't similar to cheque the somesthesia of a bath earlier I get in, due to the fact that it's truthful acold and it makes it harder [to get in]," Dvalishvili tells ESPN. "I knew the h2o wasn't deep, truthful I didn't deliberation I could leap successful feetfirst. I wanted to leap successful astatine an angle, similar you bash successful shallow water. I didn't recognize the h2o was frozen."

He went for it, pushing disconnected the slope with some feet, hands outstretched. The crystal broke, but not without a whole batch of resistance. Dvalishvili instantly stood up, enactment his hands connected his caput and began repeating, "F---, I americium truthful stupid. I americium truthful stupid. F---."

Dvalishvili went consecutive to the exigency room, wherever a chopped connected the close broadside of his caput was closed with staples. For the longest time, hairsbreadth wouldn't turn from the scar site. But aft undergoing a hairsbreadth transplant 2 years later, helium looks bully arsenic new.

Diving headfirst into that water is admittedly 1 of the dumbest things Dvalishvili has ever done. One of the smartest things helium has ever done is station a video of the full happening to the internet. It went viral and gained him tens of thousands of followers successful a azygous day.

"I didn't adjacent retrieve I'd filmed it astatine first," Dvalishvili says. "When I was walking home, I said, 'Oh s---, I was filming.' I watched it and I laughed astatine myself. I said, 'I'm going to station it. Some radical volition telephone maine stupid, but this is me, this is reality.'"

In speaking with those closest to him, arsenic good arsenic Dvalishvili himself, each portion of this communicative -- jumping into a frozen lake, filming himself doing it and laughing astir it afterward -- is classical Merab. The 34-year-old champion is simply a "lovable idiot," successful the words of 1 friend. He is obsessed with his telephone and regularly films everything helium does. Regardless of the situation, helium is Act First, Think Second, Post to Social Media Third.

Dvalishvili (19-4) is scheduled to support his 135-pound rubric successful a rematch against Sean O'Malley (18-2) astatine UFC 316 connected Saturday successful New Jersey (10 p.m. ET connected ESPN PPV, with prelims astatine 8 connected ESPN/ESPN+/Disney+ and aboriginal prelims astatine 6 p.m. connected ESPN+/Disney+). Although Dvalishvili took the loop from O'Malley successful their archetypal combat successful October, O'Malley remains the bigger prima of the two. That's improbable to alteration successful the adjacent future, but Dvalishvili's humor, honesty and quirkiness are dilatory starting to triumph implicit the MMA community.

Ahead of this weekend's rematch, ESPN spoke to Dvalishvili's friends, teammates and household members to uncover antecedently unheard stories that exemplify this classical Merab character. The results bash not disappoint.

Growing up with Merab: '[He] didn't cognize what fearfulness was'

Unsurprisingly, Dvalishvili has had a near-death experience. Actually, helium has had a few.

When helium was 6, helium astir drowned successful a stream portion helium and his 2 older brothers were hiking successful their autochthonal state of Georgia.

"Merab didn't cognize what fearfulness was," Dvalishvili's eldest brother, Misha, told ESPN. "Even arsenic a child, helium was impulsive, assured and loved to instrumentality risks. We were connected a travel to the mountains and helium dove consecutive into...