Jose Aldo

UFC 278: Usman vs. Edwards 2 took place August 30 at the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. Former UFC champion Jose Aldo (31-7) and Merab Dvalishvili (14-4) ...

Aldo lands a jab and a right to the body. Aldo up against the fence and Dvalishvili landing knees to the thigh. Aldo lands a good knee to the body though and breaks. Dvalishvili tries to muscle down a body lock but Aldo working the whizzer too well. Dvalishvili tries a clinch but Aldo breaks. Dvalishvili pushing the pace and Aldo is back to the fence all the time now. Aldo breaks again and Dvalishvili spams another shot. Aldo lands a combo that gets Dvalishvili backing up. Aldo lands a big right hand and then charges with a jumping knee just before the horn! Dvalishvili tries to break with a hook but eats a shot and stumbles backwards. Dvalishvili barges in and gets a body lock against the fence, now a single, but this is Aldo’s bread and butter. Dvalishvili throwing some leg kicks but Aldo is checking them and lands a powerful one of his own.

Dvalishvili (15-4 MMA, 8-2 UFC) extended his winning streak to seven fights with a unanimous decision victory over former UFC champ Aldo (31-8 MMA, 13-7 UFC) in ...

UFC

Dvalishvili is now in prime position for a title shot in a division where his friend and training partner holds the crown.

"This is our job and whatever we do, we have to do best. Still, Aldo collapsed to his back in disbelief upon hearing the scorecards that created a touching moment between fighters as they hugged from their knees. Aldo (31-8) spent all three rounds successfully stuffing Dvalishvili's attempts at bringing the fight to the ground, save for a successful shot late in Round 3 that saw the Brazilian icon bounce right back up to his feet. But he may have created a problem as Dvalishvili inched closer to a potential title shot against teammate and 135-pound champion Aljamain Sterling, who helped corner him for the fight. He made me humble and made me realize how amateur I was. Unfortunately for Aldo, the former featherweight king, his lack of offense failed to match the success he had on defense.

It wasn't the fight many people hoped for, but Merab Dvalishvili used pressure and grappling to defeat Jose Aldo at UFC 278.

Dvalishvili came forward with a couple of combinations in the middle of the round. Aldo threw a high kick and hook after breaking free, but Dvalishvili pinned Aldo to the cage again — albeit with a fifth and sixth unsuccessful takedown attempt. Aldo finally started to throw his leg kicks and land jabs, but Dvalishvili didn’t back down and returned fire.

Former Featherweight Champion José Aldo Has His Sights Set On Defeating Merab Dvalishvili At UFC 278 And Going For The Bantamweight Belt Soon After.

[Costa vs Rockhold](https://www.ufc.com/video/ufc-278-usman-vs-edwards-2-countdown-co-main-event-paulo-costa-vs-luke-rockhold-slc) [Usman vs Edwards](https://www.ufc.com/video/ufc-278-usman-vs-edwards-2-countdown-main-event-welterweight-championship-salt-lake-city) [Episode 6](https://www.ufc.com/video/ufc-278-embedded-usman-vs-edwards-2-costa-rockhold-salt-lake-city-episode-6) [Episode 4](https://www.ufc.com/video/ufc-278-embedded-usman-vs-edwards-2-costa-rockhold-salt-lake-city-episode-4) [Episode 3](https://www.ufc.com/video/ufc-278-embedded-usman-vs-edwards-2-costa-rockhold-salt-lake-city-episode-3) [Merab Dvalishvili ](https://www.ufc.com/news/merab-dvalishvili-cool-calm-and-collected-ufc-278-usman-vs-edwards-2) [Episode 2](https://www.ufc.com/video/ufc-278-embedded-usman-vs-edwards-2-costa-rockhold-salt-lake-city-episode-2) [ Leon Edwards](https://www.ufc.com/news/leon-edwards-finally-gets-his-chance-ufc-278-usman-vs-edwards-2-welterwight-title-main-event) [Episode 1](https://www.ufc.com/video/ufc-278-embedded-usman-vs-edwards-2-costa-rockhold-salt-lake-city-episode-1) [UFC 278: Usman vs Edwards 2](/event/ufc-278), Live From The Vivint Arena In Salt Lake City, Utah. “When I was at my lowest, my coach Dede (Andre Pederneiras), who’s like a father to me, has always been there for me,” Aldo said. After losing to the likes of McGregor, Max Holloway and current UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski, Aldo needed a change of scenery.

In a fight with huge title implications in the crowded and remarkably deep men's bantamweight division, Merab Dvalishvili notched the biggest victory of his ...

Merab threw a couple of shoulder strikes, disengaged, and then shot again much to the protestation of the crowd. Aldo made a late surge in the closing seconds that included a wicked body shot that drew a smile from Dvalishvili. As for Aldo, it’s the end of his three-fight winning streak and likely the end of his final push to become a UFC champion again.

Analyzing Saturday's UFC 278 odds and lines between Jose Aldo vs. Merab Dvalishvili, with MMA picks, tips and predictions.

[Tipico.com](https://media.tipico.com/C.ashx?btag=a_94b_163c_ufc-278-jose-aldo-vs-merab-dvalishvili-odds-picks-and-predictions-pos-legal&affid=47&siteid=94&adid=163&c=ufc-278-jose-aldo-vs-merab-dvalishvili-odds-picks-and-predictions-pos-legal) for Terms and Conditions. Please [gamble responsibly](https://sportsbookwire.usatoday.com/bet-and-wager-101-responsible-gaming-and-gambling/). Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO). [Tipico Sportsbook](https://media.tipico.com/C.ashx?btag=a_94b_163c_ufc-278-jose-aldo-vs-merab-dvalishvili-odds-picks-and-predictions-pos2&affid=47&siteid=94&adid=163&c=ufc-278-jose-aldo-vs-merab-dvalishvili-odds-picks-and-predictions-pos2), Sportsbook Wire’s official sportsbook partner in CO and NJ. He’ll do it again here against Aldo (+110). Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. Yes (-210): Fight to go the distance is too risky, as you must wager more than 2 times your potential return. Over 2.5 Rounds (-250) is an even worse play. Dvalishvili has rattled off 7 straight wins since losing his first 2 bouts at the UFC level. [ESPN+](https://go.web.plus.espn.com/c/1205322/535101/9070?subId1=SBW) by signing up [here](https://go.web.plus.espn.com/c/1205322/535101/9070?subId1=SBW). Aldo heads to the octagon with a 2-inch reach advantage. ET on ABC/ESPN/ESPN+.

Merab Dvalishvili was waiting on a big fight but he never imagined the UFC would call him with an offer to face a legend like Jose Aldo.

I have to be smart and I have to show everybody that I can fight everywhere. “First, I have to win this fight, Aljo has to defend his belt. I know he’s going to do it. He’s in Russia and I hope he gets locked there and never comes to the U.S.” “I have to fight everywhere. He’s the best and he’s going to try to kick my ass but we will see. It’s hard to take him down and even if you take him down, he has great jiu-jitsu. He will get up or he will try to attack submissions. I don’t want to talk about him. We’ve got to show people a good fight.” He’s a legend, I have respect for him. “It’s amazing,” Dvalishvili told The Fighter vs.