‘Round two!’: UFC ace Merab Dvalishvili returns for ‘rematch’ with frozen lake after he was BUSTED OPEN in dive gone wrong (VIDEO)

Georgian UFC star Merab Dvalishvili has shown that his sense of humor has remained intact after he returned to "rematch" the frozen lake which led to a nasty head wound and a trip to the emergency room earlier this week.

Dvalishvili caused a stir online when he released a video on Instagram showing him attempting to dive into what he thought was a snowy lake - but one sickening thud and a some gnarly head lacerations later, he quickly discovered that the lake had frozen over since the last time he had been there.

The 30-year-old, who is the 12th-ranked fighter in the UFC's bantamweight fold, was in clear discomfort after the ill-fated dive, quickly emerging from the lake while holding his head as blood dripped down his forearms.

In a separate post, Dvalishvili assured fans that he was largely uninjured and that the most painful part of the entire incident came in the emergency room where doctors used staples to stem the bleeding.

As is the sign of any fighter worth their salt, Dvalishvili wasn't going to let the frozen body of water get the best of him - and he returned for round two, this time with a boxing head-guard and some gloves to show his sub-zero enemy that it takes a lot more than some nasty cuts and mild concussion to keep him down. 

"Hey guys, I hope all of you guys are doing good," he announced on Instagram. "So yesterday, I make this mistake - I jumped into the ice water.

"I should not have jumped but the day before it wasn't freezing, it was just snow. 

"The night before it was lots of snow and I thought I was jumping into the snow. I make a mistake.

"Hopefully everybody had fun, everybody laughed. So this video is just for fun - hopefully you guys enjoy."

All levity aside, Dvalishvili can count his lucky stars that the injuries he suffered weren't more serious.

Had he knocked himself out on the thick layer of ice he would have plunged unconscious into the water - and given that he was alone and filming himself with his own phone, there would have been no one to alert authorities to his situation.

Dvalishvili, who has won five straight fights in the UFC to stand on the verge of title contention at 135lbs, was slated to face the dangerous Cody Stamann in the UFC's event in Las Vegas on Saturday but was forced to withdraw from the bout due to effects associated with a positive coronavirus diagnosis.