“This is the fight people wanted to see—except for these six guys over here.” Dana White quipped at the UFC 316 pre-fight presser as he mocked the MMA media for questioning the legitimacy of Sean O’Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili 2. And honestly, there is some truth to it! The duo’s initial encounter at UFC 306 wasn’t a close fight by any means. ‘The Machine’ exercised full control over the former champ and slayed him to win the gold. Moreover, the Georgian brought out his trolling tricks as he planted multiple kisses on O’Malley’s back during the fight. Domination and disrespect!
And so many people questioned the head honcho’s decision to grant the Montana native an immediate title shot and instead a rebound fight to climb the ladder. But these are questions! The reality is that ‘Suga’ and ‘The Machine’ are set to clash once again at UFC 316. For the unversed, ‘Suga’ is recovering from a torn labrum — an injury he suffered 10 weeks out from UFC 306 — and needed surgery following the bout. Now fully recovered, O’Malley is ready to step back into the Octagon, hungry to take his belt back, and has made it clear he believes this rematch will be much sweeter for him.
Before we dive deeper into O’Malley’s mindset, let’s first take a look at what UFC color commentator Joe Rogan had to say about the matchup. On the latest episode of the Joe Rogan Experience (#2309), during a conversation with Joey Diaz, Rogan bluntly shared a one-liner, “Suga Sean O Malley and Merab Dvalishvili, the rematch should be absolute fu—-g chaos.”
September 14, 2024, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA: SEAN OÃââ MALLEY and MERAB DVALISHVILI fight in their 5-round Bantamweight Title Main Event at UFC 306 Riyadh Season Noche UFC at the Sphere in Las Vegas. Las Vegas USA – ZUMAs346 20240914_zsp_s346_015 Copyright: xAlejandroxSalazarx
In their first encounter, the fight ended in a unanimous decision with scores of 49-46, 48-47, and 48-47. Dvalishvili’s wrestling-heavy approach didn’t make the fight as exciting as it could have been, though there were still some thrilling moments, especially when Dvalishvili kissed O’Malley’s neck in round two as mentioned above.
Rogan believes the rematch is going to be even more exciting, predicting chaos after what happened in the first fight. O’Malley spoke to Ariel Helwani about his mindset regarding the rematch. He said, “You can either go up or down. I wanted to go up. The camp and the whole fight didn’t go as planned. But I feel like it’s going to make this one that much sweeter. I’m going to be a massive underdog. People aren’t going to expect what I know I’m capable of on June 7, so it’s going to make it that much sweeter.”
Not only does Rogan think this, but another veteran UFC fighter also said that the rematch will be “different.”
Chael Sonnen doubles down on Merab Dvalishvili vs. Sean O’Malley 2
Chael Sonnen gave his perspective on the rematch and believes that the former champion was weighed down by the pressure of fear of losing, with too much on the line. Speaking on his YouTube channel, ‘The Bad Guy’ said:
“It will be a very different fight. Sean’s going to enjoy this fight a lot more. The pressures that were put on O’Malley and the way that fight came around were razor-thin. But, everything to lose was on O’Malley; everything was expected of him. If Sean is not the sport’s biggest star, if he’s not, he might be! He has two numbers from two gates, last year, to support that he is! O’Malley is not a contender, you can’t just put him in the contender’s match.”
Sonnen added that this fight will be very different and that O’Malley deserves the rematch. He pointed to O’Malley’s massive success at the gates for UFC 299 and UFC 306 as proof of his star status. However, O’Malley’s former rival Aljamain Sterling expressed some concern about Sean’s change in lifestyle ahead of UFC 316. Speaking on his own YouTube channel, Sterling said:
“So which part did it say, ‘Yeah, and I added in wrestling training sessions. I mean, of course, maybe he is. It’s just funny that everyone made such a big thing, ‘Oh, he’s changing his life, he’s giving up Mary Jane. I’m like, those are the things that technically made you who you are and a champion.”
With different perspectives coming from two former champions, the big question remains: Will Sean O’Malley win his belt back? Share your thoughts below!
The post Joe Rogan Sums Up Anticipation for Sean O’Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili UFC 316 Rematch in 1 Line appeared first on EssentiallySports.
