RAF has confirmed that Lazishvili, the 21-year-old Georgian wrestler who was alongside Merab Dvalishvili when a group led by Usman Nurmagomedov confronted them in an Abu Dhabi hotel lobby, will face Urijah Faber at RAF Abu Dhabi. He replaces Umar Nurmagomedov, who has been removed from the event. RAF co-founder Chad Bronstein also confirmed that Dvalishvili will compete as planned against Marlon Moraes.
It is the most remarkable turnaround of the week. Lazishvili is a lifelong wrestler and the younger brother of former UFC fighter Zviad Lazishvili, and he was in Abu Dhabi simply to support his friend. When the confrontation broke out on Wednesday, footage showed him fighting back alongside Dvalishvili against a much larger group, and clips of him in the melee spread rapidly across social media, turning him into one of the most talked-about figures in combat sports almost overnight.
The aftermath was serious. Abu Dhabi police arrested 10 people, and a criminal court has since ruled on the case. According to Ariel Helwani and multiple reports, eight people, including Usman Nurmagomedov, received six-month jail sentences along with fines and deportation after serving their terms. Dvalishvili and Lazishvili were each fined 50,000 dirhams, roughly $13,600, but were not jailed, and both were released from detention on Friday. RAF had already said Usman would not be welcome at Saturday’s event.
Now comes the part nobody could have scripted. Faber is one of the most important figures in the history of the lighter weight classes, a former WEC champion and UFC Hall of Famer who helped build the sport’s bantamweight and featherweight divisions in the United States, and who brought plenty of wrestling of his own to his MMA career. Lazishvili brings youth, a pure wrestling background and a week of momentum that no promotion could manufacture. For RAF, the matchup turns one of the ugliest moments of fight week into one of its most compelling stories.
Dvalishvili, meanwhile, will be competing three days after being left bloodied in the hotel lobby. The former UFC bantamweight champion, who lost his trilogy fight to Petr Yan at UFC 333 last month, faces former WSOF bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes in a meeting of two of the best bantamweights of their generation.
Both matches are on a stacked card at Etihad Arena on Saturday, November 14, headlined by Khamzat Chimaev’s challenge to Colby Covington for the cruiserweight crossover title, with Arman Tsarukyan defending his new middleweight crossover title against Neiman Gracie and Zabit Magomedsharipov making his RAF debut against Giga Chikadze. RAF Abu Dhabi streams on FOX Nation.
Three days ago, Saba Lazishvili was a young wrestler in a hotel lobby. On Saturday, he walks out to face a Hall of Famer on one of the biggest wrestling stages in the world.
