Merab Dvalishvili’s coach believes Wiz Khalifa could have success in combat sports

Wiz Khalifa recently trained at Syndicate MMA in Las Vegas, working with John Wood—the coach behind UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili—and the veteran coach came away impressed with the 10-time Grammy-nominated rapper's striking ability.

Wood offered substantial praise for Khalifa's standup game and overall athleticism. At 6'4" with a lanky frame, long limbs, and evident striking power, Khalifa impressed the coach with his flexibility and years of prior combat training. Wood emphasized that Khalifa picked up the technical details quickly, with their session reaching a flow state by the end. "He brought his whole squad in, and we did a session, and it went great," Wood told Home of Fight. "That dude is legit. He could whoop some ass, man... In an amateur stand-up fight, absolutely. It's legit; he is real. He's like 6'4", lanky, long, hits pretty good, flexible. He's been training for a long time... He's athletic. He picked up everything that we're doing, and we were just flying at the end."

While Wood stopped short of assessing Khalifa's grappling ability, he suggested the rapper could compete seriously in amateur kickboxing. Khalifa's enthusiasm for combat sports is well-documented, and this training session offers a glimpse into the level of skill the entertainer has developed over years of training.