Sean O’Malley is interested in defending his UFC bantamweight title against many fighters, but it seems Merab Dvalishvili is not one of those people. O’Malley shook up the MMA world when he captured the UFC bantamweight strap with a stunning second-round knockout of Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292.
The win catapulted O’Malley into instant UFC stardom, and afterward, he laid out his plans for his first title defense. “Sugar” called for a rematch with Marlon “Chito” Vera, the veteran bantamweight contender who defeated him via a first-round knockout in 2020.
Merab Dvalishvil claps back at Sean O’Malley
O’Malley took to social media to fire shots at Merab and said, “My walkouts are more exciting than Merab’s fights.” Merab replied to O’Malley’s claims, saying, “Bro, I respect you as a champion, but everyone knows I am the most deserving of this shot. Put respect on your division and yourself and fight the next in line.”
Bro,respect you are champion but everyone knows I am the most deserving of this shot.Before you fight guys from outside of top 15. Now you are champion, and call someone from outside the top 5 with a 1 win streak. Put respect on your division and yourself and fight next in line🦾 https://t.co/SKoA9o1aOY
— Merab “The Machine” Dvalishvili (@MerabDvalishvil) September 10, 2023
Merab is of the opinion that nobody deserves the title shot more than him, whereas O’Malley refuses to fight Merab because he claims that he knocked out Aljamain and Merab both on the same night. This refers to the fact that Merab and The Funk Master are buddies, and Merab refused to go for the title because he didn’t want to fight his friend.
Sean O’Malley rejects Aljamain Sterling’s rematch request
Sterling went fishing for an immediate rematch against O’Malley, but “Suga” isn’t biting yet. However, it hasn’t stopped Aljo from pushing for the fight. The former titleholder was present for UFC 293 and took the opportunity to hold up his phone, showing “Rematch, Suga?” with a bunch of money bags under it.
👀👀👀 #UFC293 pic.twitter.com/NeZGE2uKos
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) September 10, 2023
https://twitter.com/SugaSeanMMA/status/1700719135557365999?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1700719135557365999%7Ctwgr%5E096e8513f2ffa9b73095587c25a51a3f772c57c8%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mmamania.com%2F2023%2F9%2F10%2F23866807%2Fsean-omalley-shoots-down-aljamain-sterlings-thirsty-rematch-callout-if-it-was-close-maybe
However, Merab didn’t take part in the Twitter mobile phone game during UFC 293, probably trying to be respectful and not step all over his good friend Aljamain’s callout. He seems to have accepted that the fight won’t happen unless he makes it happen with more undeniable wins.
— C H🖕🏽T O🇪🇨V E R A (@chitoveraUFC) September 10, 2023
Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments on who you think Sean O’Malley will fight next, Chito Vera or Merab Dvalishvili, as chances are high that it won’t be a rematch with Aljo for now.
