Sean O’Malley is set to rematch Merab Dvalishvili for the UFC bantamweight championship at UFC 316. His longtime jiu-jitsu coach, Augusto Mendes, expressed strong confidence that a more “mature” and fully healthy “Suga” will secure the victory this time around.
O’Malley previously lost to Dvalishvili by decision in September 2024, marking just the second defeat of his professional mixed martial arts career. He has been open about the challenges he faced leading up to that fight at UFC 306. Nine months later, Mendes believes O’Malley is fully prepared after undergoing a “very long,” 12-week training camp.
According to Mendes, a hip injury prevented O’Malley from effectively practicing guard work during the camp for the first fight. The champion reportedly agreed to participate in UFC 306 primarily to headline the significant event at The Sphere in Las Vegas. O’Malley also dealt with injuries before his title-winning knockout victory over Aljamain Sterling, which Mendes indicated were even more severe than those prior to UFC 306.
However, for the upcoming bout, “Suga” is expected to bring his complete skillset for five rounds of championship action. Mendes highlighted significant personal growth, including changes in lifestyle such as giving up marijuana and social media, and recently becoming a father, as contributing factors to O`Malley`s newfound maturity.
“He’s more mature now,” Mendes told MMA Fighting. “He’s 30 now, and he’s enjoyed his 20s like all of us, right? I mean, he more than us because of his status [laughs]. But it’s his evolution as a person.”
Mendes added, “We think Merab didn’t see the best version of ‘Suga’. Merab thinks he knows what is like, but it wasn’t his best last time around. Maybe he’ll be surprised as soon as the fight starts and he sees different movement, different power, better jiu-jitsu. ‘Damn, it’s not like I thought it would be.’ We’re sure of that. ‘Suga’ knows that too. We’re very confident that Merab will see the best version of Sean now.”
Dvalishvili boasts an impressive winning streak spanning over seven years. A win at UFC 316 would extend his streak to 13 victories, placing him fourth in company history behind only Anderson Silva, Kamaru Usman, and Islam Makhachev for the longest winning streaks. Mendes, who previously described Dvalishvili as “hittable” before their first meeting, is confident that his streak will end on Saturday.
“[O’Malley] can win in any area,” Mendes asserted. “He’s well-prepared. He can win via decision if he has to. He’s ready for 25 minutes of war. He’s focused. Merab really is hittable. His approach to the fight was different than his other fights. For [Henry] Cejudo, even Umar [Nurmagomedov], he fought more like a striker. Against Sean he would punch the air from afar and then shoot when in range.”
Mendes speculated on Dvalishvili`s potential strategy: “I think he’ll taunt from the outside and keep his hands up and shoot when in close range, but I believe Sean can win in any area. I’m very confident in a knockout. Maybe there are some surprises on the ground. We know Merab is not easy to tap, but we have some tricks up his sleeve if he gets to a good position.”
