Athletes
SEAN O’MALLEY | FULL CIRCLE IN NEWARK
Bantamweight Challenger Talks Changes Ahead Of Championship Rematch On Saturday
On most fronts, Sean O’Malley’s first meeting with Merab Dvalishvili didn’t go as anticipated.
Paired off in the main event of UFC 306 last September at Sphere, O’Malley entered as the champion, seeking the second defense of his bantamweight tile, while Dvalishvili arrived as the hard-charging challenger, eager to avenge the loss suffered by his dear friend and long-time training partner Aljamain Sterling and claim championship gold for himself.
Dvalishvili largely dominated the fight, using his relentless wrestling and bottomless gas tank to dethrone the usually iridescent champion, whose output and flair was far more muted that first time around. In the aftermath of the contest, O’Malley disclosed that he entered the fight with a significant hip injury that limited his ability to grapple during training camp — a prerequisite when you’re preparing to fight the Georgian — and the assumption was that once he was healthy and ready to return, the two would face off again.
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“Physically it was completely different,” O’Malley said of his training camp for this weekend’s championship rematch with Dvalishvili. “I was able to prepare the proper way for a guy like Merab. You can’t run the mountain, hit mitts, and then go fight Merab; you’ve got to be on the mats, grappling. You’ve got to be wrestling, and that’s what we were able to do this fight.
“Even last fight, I was very confident going into that cage, thought I was gonna put his lights out — didn’t get the job done — but I'm even more confident this time.”
Being at full strength is far from the only difference this time around for O’Malley, who heads into his fourth consecutive championship engagement.
Earlier this year, the Arizona-based athlete scaled all the way back on his social media, while simultaneously pressing pause on his use of marijuana; two things that were tremendously influential in his rapid rise to fame and elevation to superstar status in the UFC.
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“I don’t think…those weren’t…” began O’Malley, searching for the right words. “I don’t think there was a lack of discipline or being too distracted going into any of those camps. Every camp has been good — I've been able to focus, able to dial in. These were more changes in a day-to-day, personal, how my mind feels.
“I always felt good, felt happy, but I was like, ‘I feel like I’m missing out. I feel like I could be a little more present, a little more happy.’ For me, eliminating distractions was the key to that. I think it will play a role in my performance, somewhat, but that wasn’t really the reason I did it.”
Though preparation wasn’t the reason for the changes, the thoughtful and articulate challenger does recognize the impact cutting out social media has had on his stress levels heading into this weekend’s highly anticipated rematch with Dvalishvili.
“Just being off my phone makes me feel like I have a lot less stress,” he said. “The build-up to the fight isn’t as big when you’re not seeing it everywhere; you’re not seeing it on Twitter, you’re not seeing it on Instagram.
UFC 316 FREE FIGHTS: Pena vs Nunes | Dvalishvili vs Nurmagomdeov | Harrison vs Holm | O'Malley vs Sterling
“I’m not seeing it as much, so I’m not building it up to be some crazy event. It’s just another fight for me.
“It’s the fourth title fight in a row,” he added. “I understand my mission of what I have to go out there and do, but I’m not making it some unrealistic, huge event that is scary, in a sense.”
That’s a positive, because facing Dvalishvili is a scary proposition in and of itself, as the 34-year-old champion enters their second battle on a 12-fight winning streak, having put together one of the most impressive runs of victories of any fighter in recent memory.
On the way up the divisional ranks, the fun-loving grinder turned back a former title challenger and three men that previously held UFC gold before dethroning O’Malley. Four months later, he was back in the Octagon, authoring a signature win over undefeated challenger Umar Nurmagomedov, leaning on his conditioning and pace to rally over the final three rounds to retain his title.
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For the 30-year-old challenger, UFC 316 represents an opportunity to fix the things that didn’t flow properly the last time they met, both inside and outside of the Octagon.
“I think last fight was almost like a forced beef, rather than a real beef,” suggested O’Malley, whose social media retreat has made for a much quieter build to this weekend’s rematch. “The fight before that with “Chito” was a real beef, and that one did well on pay-per-view, people wanted to see it.
Sean O'Malley Fight Week Interview | UFC 316
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Sean O'Malley Fight Week Interview | UFC 316
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“Me as a fan? For the main event, I want those m*****f****** that hate each other and there is something to it, but I kind of forced that last fight — it didn’t feel genuine, didn’t feel real — and I think if people aren’t as excited because there isn’t beef there, it is what it is.
“The positives I took away are that without a great camp, without doing what we did this camp, I was still able to go out there and win some rounds,” he added, shifting attention to inside the cage. “At the end of the day, I wasn’t too disappointed in my performance.”
Fighters on the Rise | UFC 316: Dvalishvili vs O’Malley 2
While fights like this are often framed as the chance for the vanquished combatant from the first meeting seeking vengeance, the reality for O’Malley — and most fighters, honestly — is that they would love a chance to run it back with anyone that gets the better of them, championship fight or not.
It just so happens that in this case, the stakes are high.
“No, not really,” O’Malley said swiftly when asked if he feels pressure to give a better showing on Saturday night in terms of the fans and media. “To myself I do — I wanna get that one back and I wanna do it in spectacular fashion, but I think about that every fight. I want to end it in a beautiful, viral KO; that’s the goal every fight.
“I think he’s supposed to beat me,” he added, pivoting to the expectations currently heaped on the champion’s shoulders and the ease he feels heading into battle this weekend. “He beat me last fight, he’s the champ, he’s the favorite, he’s the greatest of all time, and I don’t feel like I have much pressure on my shoulders. I feel like I’m in a good position.”
MORE UFC 316: Main Event Coach Conversation | Saturday's Fight By Fight Preview
Though he may not be entering the fray with retribution on his mind, make no mistake about it: O’Malley is eager to reclaim the title, and sees this weekend as a cool, full circle moment at the apex of the bantamweight division.
“It’s gonna be incredible,” he said when asked how it would feel to become a two-time champion on Saturday night. “To take the belt from Aljamain Sterling and then to take the belt from his teammate Merab — that’s movie-s***; you can’t make that s*** up. It’s gonna feel good, gonna feel right, and it’s full circle.
“This is where I gave Merab my jacket, this is where Aljo and Henry fought, and I fought the winner. We’re back in New Jersey; full circle.”
Should he come out victorious, the series between the two would be all even at one win apiece; a potential trilogy bout dangling as an ever-present possibility.
MORE UFC 316: Pre-Fight Press Conference
Though Dvalishvili has fought since their first encounter, it’s an immediate rematch for O’Malley, so would “Suga” be willing to begin his second reign by running things back one more time with the dangerous Dvalishvili?
“The answer is not no, the answer is not yes — the answer is what does the UFC want?” he stated. “At the end of the day, I think the champ has a little bit of a say, but the UFC has plans, they make plans; they’re the best at what they do. ‘Yes Boss.’”
Before he can even consider giving “The Machine” an immediate rematch, O’Malley has to get through the indefatigable champion on Saturday night at UFC 316.
How does he expect to do it?
RELATED: Merab Dvalishvili | Ready For The Rematch
“Win the first three rounds and win the last two rounds,” he said with a smirk. “That’s the goal, that’s the game plan.
“Too sharp, too fast, too focused,” he added. “It’s time to perform. Time to let go and go let the work take over.”
Zac Pacleb contributed to this story.
UFC 316: Dvalishvili vs O'Malley 2 took place live from Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on June 7, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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