Sean O’Malley, a former UFC bantamweight champion, has addressed those who have criticized his impending bout with Merab Dvalishvili.
Recently, “Sugar” agreed to compete against “The Machine” in the main event of UFC 316 in June. Their previous meeting at The Sphere in September of last year, in which Merab Dvalishvili dominated the then-bantamweight champion, will be rematched. Following the bout, Sean O’Malley demanded a rematch after disclosing a long list of injuries that affected his performance. His desire for a second chance at Dvalishvili was fulfilled earlier this month by Dana White.
The announcement of their second battle was mainly mixed, since their first fight was huge. The former UFC bantamweight champion’s immediate rematch with Merab Dvalishvili sparked outrage from many fans online. Aljamain Sterling, a former champion who notably lost his own rematch against Sean O’Malley after three successful championship defenses, even made light of the circumstance on X.
But “Sugar” isn’t receiving any of the criticism. Sean O’Malley talked about his impending fight with Merab Dvalishvili on The Ariel Helwani Show earlier today. There, the veteran UFC reporter questioned the former champion about the aforementioned criticism and to address those who believe he isn’t deserving of a chance to win a title.
Sean O’Malley addresses those who are opposing his rematch with Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 316
“Don’t watch. Saturday night, June 7th, f*cking watch your reality TV show. Don’t watch the fight.” Sean O’Malley stated to Ariel Helwani, discussing his UFC 316 return against Merab Dvalishvili. “I do [understand where they’re coming from], one-hundred percent. My last fight, I don’t think a lot of people went and rewatched it. It’s not one of those fights that’s super worth rewatching unless, I do think the second time watching it, it is a little bit closer than the first time you watched it live.”
He continued, “But, I don’t think many people rewatched it or were interested in rewatching it. Their opinion is going to kind of just stay the same. But, again, if they’re not interested, don’t watch it. But when I go out there and win, I guarantee people are going to go and rewatch… At the end of the day, I think when that Saturday rolls around, people are going to be talking about it.”
For what it’s worth, Sean O’Malley isn’t currently favored to re-win bantamweight gold in June. According to the opening odds from Fanduel, ‘Sugar’ is currently a +200 betting underdog for his return. Meanwhile, Merab Dvalishvili is currently a -265 favorite to retain his UFC title.
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