Dvalishvili's Coach Says Khalifa Could Win Amateur Fights

Wiz Khalifa possesses legitimate striking skills and could compete in amateur kickboxing, according to John Wood, the coach who trains former UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili.

Wood trained the 10-time Grammy-nominated rapper during a recent session at Syndicate MMA in Las Vegas, and came away impressed with Khalifa's standup game. The veteran coach told Home of Fight that Khalifa has the physical tools and training background to threaten opponents in amateur-level competition.

Wood Praises Khalifa's Athletic Build and Learning Ability

"He brought his whole squad in, and we did a session, and it went great," Wood said, per Sherdog. "That dude is legit. He could whoop some ass, man. 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."

Wood acknowledged uncertainty about Khalifa's grappling foundation but said the rapper would be a serious problem in an amateur standup fight. The coach praised Khalifa's ability to absorb instruction quickly, noting their session reached a flow state toward the finish.

Khalifa's interest in combat sports is well documented, though Wood's assessment represents one of the first public evaluations from a coach with elite-level MMA credentials.

Reported via:

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