Merab Dvalishvili Challenges Sean O'Malley's Excuses Ahead of UFC 306

Merab Dvalishvili Responds to Sean O'Malley's Claims

Sean O'Malley is using Merab Dvalishvili's cut to make excuses for UFC 306 at The Sphere. I’m not sure how or why “Suga” would use his opponent’s training injury to make an excuse for losing the bantamweight title. I’ve been staring at my screen for a few minutes trying to piece this together.

Perhaps Merab thinks O'Malley is trying to force UFC to cancel their five-round showdown on Sept. 14 in Las Vegas? Or maybe UFC CEO Dana White was correct in this assessment. “Sean O'Malley, you are in big trouble,” Dvalishvili said on Instagram. “Stop talking too much, bro. I wanna tell all these people everything is good. I’m here in the gym 24-7 guys. I got a little cut, this is part of the training. This is nothing. You think this little cut is gonna stop me? I don’t understand. I guess you guys are weak and you guys are making excuses, whoever is talking too much. You guys know this is part of the training.”

Implications for UFC 306

It seems chasing down mouthy O'Malley fans is also part of the training. Dvalishvili (17-4) captured 10 straight wins to earn his crack at the bantamweight crown, a title shot that might have come much sooner if not for his relationship with former champion Aljamain Sterling.

As for O'Malley (18-1, 1 NC), who planished Sterling to steal the strap at UFC 292, he made his first title defense with a commanding performance over Marlon Vera at UFC 299. The way things are going, we may need a second backup fighter for UFC 306.