TLDR
- Petr Yan is training at Khabib Nurmagomedov’s facility in Kislovodsk, Russia, despite a history of public tension between them
- Yan dominated the wrestling at UFC 323, landing five of nine takedowns while Dvalishvili made only two of 29
- Dvalishvili says his corner confused him by telling him to attack the body when he hadn’t trained for it
- Dvalishvili has hired a new wrestling coach named Jessie to prepare for the trilogy fight
- If Dvalishvili wins at UFC 333, he wants to face Song Yadong next
Sources: yardbarker.com | essentiallysports.com | mmasucka.com
Petr Yan is preparing for his trilogy fight against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 333 by training at an elite facility in Kislovodsk, Russia. The bantamweight champion is working at the Yug Sport Olympic training base, the same location used by Khabib Nurmagomedov and his team.
Yan explained his choice in the UFC 333 countdown video. “This is a sports training base with all the infrastructure for achieving results,” he said. “That’s why the strongest athletes come here to train, to isolate themselves from distractions and be within their system.”
😳🇷🇺 Petr Yan’s shadowboxing is actually INSANE. The definition of flow state. pic.twitter.com/6qWp1nHsd7
— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) October 16, 2026
The training location raises questions because Yan has a history of public tension with Khabib’s camp. Last year, Yan criticized Umar Nurmagomedov’s UFC situation, saying he had to work harder for his opportunities. “I need to act, to work, to pave the way for myself with my labor,” Yan told Ushatayka. “Neither my brother nor my sisters have given me anything.”
Khabib responded on Instagram at the time. “Let them say you’re enjoying success because of your brother, but you’ll rise later—on your own,” he wrote.
Yan’s Training Team and Strategy
Yan is working with coach Kairat Nurmaganbetov and sparring partners Asaf Chopurov and Kurban Gadzhiev. Gadzhiev was part of Yan’s team for his previous fight against Dvalishvili at UFC 323.
The team will travel to Dubai for the second part of camp. There they will focus on wrestling and hard sparring, with Sharaputdin Magomedov joining to help prepare for Dvalishvili’s takedown pressure.
At UFC 323, Yan dominated the wrestling exchanges. He completed five of nine takedown attempts while Dvalishvili landed only two of 29. Yan also won the striking battle, breaking Dvalishvili’s nose and attacking his body with kicks and combinations.
Dvalishvili Addresses Corner Mistakes
Dvalishvili has spoken about what went wrong in his title loss. He said his corner gave him confusing advice during the fight.
“In my last fight, my corner was telling me something completely different,” Dvalishvili said. “They were telling me to attack the body, but we hadn’t worked on that at all. That confused me even more.”
For UFC 333, Dvalishvili has hired a new wrestling coach named Jessie. “I have added a few final details that I think will be crucial in the fight against Yan,” he said. “I won’t make the same mistakes I made last time.”
The 35-year-old Georgian lost his title at UFC 323 after three successful defenses. He had defeated Sean O’Malley, Cory Sandhagen, and Umar Nurmagomedov in quick succession before facing Yan.
Dvalishvili is already looking past UFC 333. He told MMA Junkie that if he wins the title back, he wants to face Song Yadong next. “If I win, Song Yadong is next,” he said. “Because we never fought each other, he’s dangerous, and we always know he has knockout power.”
The trilogy fight at UFC 333 marks the third meeting between the two bantamweights. The event takes place this weekend.
