Sean O’Malley will rematch Merab Dvalishvili for the UFC bantamweight belt at UFC 316, and his longtime jiu-jitsu coach Augusto Mendes is assured {that a} “mature” and injury-free “Suga” will get the job completed this time round.
O’Malley misplaced a call to Dvalishvili again in September 2024, struggling solely the second defeat of his skilled MMA profession. He has been very vocal in regards to the points he’s confronted previous to UFC 306. 9 months later, Mendes sees O’Malley prepared for the duty after a “very lengthy” 12-week camp.
A hip harm didn’t permit O’Malley to play guard in camp,. and the one cause the champion agreed to being a part of UFC 306 was to headline the historic pay-per-view at The Sphere in Las Vegas. O’Malley has additionally handled accidents earlier than he knocked out Aljamain Sterling to win his first UFC title, and Mendes mentioned it was even worse than those he was coping with pre-UFC 306.
This time, nonetheless, “Suga” is bringing his full arsenal for 5 rounds of championship motion. With a brand new life-style, giving up on weed and social media — and lately welcoming his son —, O’Malley is a unique man.
“He’s extra mature now,” Mendes informed MMA Combating. “He’s 30 now, and he’s loved his 20s like all of us, proper? I imply, he greater than us due to his standing [laughs]. Nevertheless it’s his evolution as an individual.”
“We predict Merab didn’t see one of the best model of ‘Suga’,” he continued. “Merab thinks he is aware of what’s like, nevertheless it wasn’t his finest final time round. Possibly he’ll be shocked as quickly because the combat begins and he sees totally different motion, totally different energy, higher jiu-jitsu. ‘Rattling, it’s not like I assumed it could be.’ We’re certain of that. ‘Suga’ is aware of that too. We’re very assured that Merab will see one of the best model of Sean now.”
Dvalishvili hasn’t misplaced in additional than seven years, and a win places him solely behind Anderson Silva, Kamaru Usman and Islam Makhachev on the checklist of longest profitable streaks in firm historical past at 13. Mendes called Dvalishvili “hittable” going into their first conflict, and is assured that his streak ends Saturday.
“[O’Malley] can win in any space,” Mendes mentioned. “He’s well-prepared. He can win by way of determination if he has to. He’s prepared for 25 minutes of struggle. He’s centered. Merab actually is hittable. His method to the combat was totally different than his different fights. For [Henry] Cejudo, even Umar [Nurmagomedov], he fought extra like a striker. Towards Sean he would punch the air from afar after which shoot when in vary.
“I feel he’ll taunt from the surface and hold his arms up and shoot when in shut vary, however I imagine Sean can win in any space. I’m very assured in a knockout. Possibly there are some surprises on the bottom. We all know Merab shouldn’t be simple to faucet, however we’ve got some methods up his sleeve if he will get to a very good place.”
