Georges St-Pierre has a pick for Merab Dvalishvili vs. Petr Yan 3. Yahoo Sports published the Hall of Famer’s prediction on Friday, Oct. 23, one day before the two bantamweights run it back in the co-main event of UFC 333, headlined by Volkanovski vs. Evloev.
When it’s a fight built on wrestling and pace, GSP’s opinion carries more weight than the average retired legend’s. He still holds the UFC records for control time (2:42:04) and top position time (2:22:05). He landed 87 takedowns at welterweight at a 73.7% clip, defended that belt nine straight times, and then came back at UFC 217 in November 2017 to submit Michael Bisping for the middleweight title before retiring for good. He is the guy who made holding people down look like a career plan.
Dvalishvili is the closest thing the current roster has to that blueprint, only louder and with more cardio than anyone should legally have. He is 21-5, sits at No. 2 at bantamweight in Knockout Daily’s rankings, and his 119 takedowns are the most in UFC history. He also ranks third all-time in total strikes landed. The former champion and first Georgian-born titleholder in UFC history started his UFC run 0-2, then strung together a 14-fight win streak that went through José Aldo, Henry Cejudo, Sean O’Malley and Yan himself. His last fight was Dec. 6, 2025, so he comes in after roughly 10 months off. That’s a normal camp cycle by my standards, and a long way from the layoffs that make me want to throw my phone.
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Fight week has had some heat. During their face off, Dvalishvili told Yan, “Talk now, enjoy. Saturday I will show you. I will eat you,” according to a clip posted by Championship Rounds on X.
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Yan, meanwhile, will have family in his corner. He confirmed to the UFC that his son will be working with him. “He wanted to do it. Who am I to say no? The kid is growing up and plays sports. I think it’ll be good energy for him,” Yan said.
Both men made 135 pounds on Friday, making the co-main official. That puts Dvalishvili vs. Yan 3 in the cage on Saturday, Oct. 24. Then we find out whether GSP read it right.
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