Merab Dvalishvili faces familiar foe as RAF Abu Dhabi adds another explosive matchup.© NDTV Photo Library
Former UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili will be back in the cage at Real American Freestyle Abu Dhabi on November 14th against Marlon Moraes. It’ll be a freestyle wrestling match at the Etihad Arena on Yas Island. Less than three weeks after Dvalishvili lost his UFC 333 trilogy fight to Petr Yan. They first fought at UFC 266 in September 2021, and Dvalishvili came through that one, having survived an early knockdown before going on to stop Moraes with punches in the second round. The rematch gives Dvalishvili a chance to get back on track and a chance to test himself against a former UFC title challenger.
Dvalishvili looks to bounce back after Yan’s trilogy setback
Merab Dvalishvili is in the RAF fight on a two-fight losing streak against Yan. He lost the bantamweight title to Yan at UFC 323 in December 2025 and then lost again by unanimous decision in their trilogy fight at UFC 333.
At UFC 333, Yan won 48-47 on all three judges’ scorecards. Dvalishvili attempted a single-fight UFC record of 58 takedowns but landed only five. Yan stopped all 39 attempts over the final three rounds.
The Georgian is now 21-6. He won the UFC title in 2024 and made three successful defences before losing to Yan.
Marlon Moraes returns from MMA retirement
Marlon Moraes, 38, is a former World Series of Fighting champion and one-time UFC title challenger. He retired from MMA in 2023 but returned in August with a unanimous-decision win over Maximiliano Perez at a regional event in São Paulo.
This will be Moraes’ first RAF appearance. The Brazilian will look to reverse the result from their 2021 meeting, when Dvalishvili’s late surge ended the fight in Round 2.
Merab Dvalishvili has previous RAF experience. He beat former UFC champions Frankie Edgar and Henry Cejudo in his first two appearances, then lost a rematch to Cejudo in August.
Chimaev vs Covington headlines RAF Abu Dhabi
RAF Abu Dhabi will be headlined by a Cruiserweight Crossover Championship match between Khamzat Chimaev and Colby Covington. Arman Tsarukyan faces Neiman Gracie in the co-main event.
The card also includes Umar Nurmagomedov against Urijah Faber, Julianna Pena against Diana Avsaragova, and championship bouts involving Kyle Snyder and Kyle Dake.
RAF Abu Dhabi marks the promotion’s first event in the Middle East. It takes place on November 14 and streams live on Fox Nation in the United States.
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