Merab Dvalishvili News

Harry Kettle - June 11, 2025

Merab Dvalishvili’s coach believes he has pinpointed the moment when Sean O’Malley began to break at UFC 316. Last weekend, Merab Dvalishvili successfully defended his UFC bantamweight championship. He did so with yet another phenomenal performance which ended with him submitting Sean O’Malley in the third round. While many felt as if him winning was likely, a lot of people thought it would come via decision. Instead, he stepped things up and managed to get the finish.

Harry Kettle - June 11, 2025

UFC star Sean O’Malley has given his in-depth thoughts on his recent UFC 316 defeat at the hands of Merab Dvalishvili. Last weekend, Sean O’Malley attempted to regain the UFC bantamweight championship in his rematch with Merab Dvalishvili. Unfortunately for him, he came up short, losing via submission in the third round. As a result of the defeat, many have been left to wonder what exactly is going to be next for him in the promotion.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 10, 2025

Could Merab Dvalishvili be in for a letdown in his next title defense? Dvalishvili has looked the part of an elite fighter every time he steps inside the Octagon. He further added to his aura by submitting Sean O’Malley in their UFC 316 rematch on Saturday. “The Machine” has lived up to his nickname, riding a 13-fight winning streak. He now has two successful UFC Bantamweight Championship defenses. He hasn’t lost a pro MMA fight since 2018.

Harry Kettle - June 10, 2025

Merab Dvalishvili’s coach John Wood has given his thoughts on a possible title fight against Cory Sandhagen. Last weekend in the main event of UFC 316, Merab Dvalishvili submitted and defeated Sean O’Malley. It served as the final chapter in their rivalry (at least for the time being), with the champion now set to move on to even bigger things. The expectation is that his next challenger will be Cory Sandhagen, who has been on a pretty solid run of form in recent years.

Cole Shelton - June 9, 2025

Merab Dvalishvili believes that a fight against Alexandre Pantoja would be one that the people would be interested in. Dvalishvili defended his bantamweight title on Saturday in the main event of UFC 316 with a submission win over Sean O’Malley. It was a dominating performance, and after the win, his next title defense wasn’t clear. Cory Sandhagen appears to be next in line, but Petr Yan and Umar Nurmagomedov are both potential candidates.

Harry Kettle - June 9, 2025

UFC president Dana White believes Merab Dvalishvili is in the greatest bantamweight of all time conversation after UFC 316. Last weekend, Merab Dvalishvili cemented himself as the best bantamweight on the planet. Many already knew that he held that title, as well as the actual championship belt, but he doubled down by once again defeating Sean O’Malley in their rematch at UFC 316. While ‘Suga’ certainly showed some improvements from the first fight, ‘The Machine’ was still able to implement his own game plan.

Harry Kettle - June 9, 2025

UFC star Sean O’Malley has issued a statement following his submission loss to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 316. As we know, Sean O’Malley fell short in his attempt to reclaim the UFC bantamweight championship last weekend. In the main event of UFC 316 on Saturday night, he was submitted in the third round by dominant champion Merab Dvalishvili. While Sean was able to showcase some improvements in the first couple of rounds, he ultimately wasn’t able to keep up with ‘The Machine’.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 8, 2025

Merab Dvalishvili says one key name played a huge role in his successful training camp for UFC 316. Dvalishvili put his bantamweight title at stake against Sean O’Malley in a rematch on Saturday. Dvalishvili captured the 135-pound gold from “Suga” in their first encounter. In the rematch, Dvalishvili secured a north-south choke in the third round to maintain his hold on the gold. It marks O’Malley’s first submission defeat in pro MMA competition.

Chris Taylor - June 7, 2025

We have you covered for all of tonight’s UFC 316 results, including the bantamweight title fight rematch between Merab Dvalishvili and Sean O’Malley. Dvalishvili (20-4 MMA) will be competing for the first time since scoring his first successful title defense against Umar Nurmagomedov at January’s UFC 311 event in California. ‘The Machine’ will enter this evening’s headliner sporting a 12-fight winning streak, which includes victories over former UFC champions Petr Yan, Henry Cejudo and Jose Aldo.

Chris Taylor - June 7, 2025

The Octagon returns to New Jersey for tonight’s UFC 316 event, a 13-bout fight card headlined by Merab Dvalishvili vs. Sean O’Malley 2. Dvalishvili (19-4 MMA) will be competing for the first time since scoring his first successful title defense against Umar Nurmagomedov at January’s UFC 311 event in California. ‘The Machine’ will enter this evening’s headliner sporting a 12-fight winning streak, which includes victories over former UFC champions Petr Yan, Henry Cejudo and Jose Aldo.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 6, 2025

The UFC 316 weigh-ins have concluded, and fans are happy to know that the marquee matches remain intact. On Friday, all competitors scheduled for the UFC 316 card in Newark tipped the scales. That includes the UFC Bantamweight Champion Merab Dvalishvili, who was actually one pound under the championship limit at 134 pounds. His rematch with Sean O’Malley is official, as the “Suga” show also made weight, clocking in at 135 pounds.

Harry Kettle - June 6, 2025

Merab Dvalishvili and Patchy Mix, who are training partners, have revealed they’d be open to the possibility of fighting each other. This weekend, Merab Dvalishvili will defend his UFC bantamweight championship against Sean O’Malley. In addition to that, former Bellator star Patchy Mix will finally make his UFC debut when he battles Mario Bautista on the same UFC 316 card. As you can imagine, given the star power of both men, there’s already been talk of them potentially colliding at some point in the future.

Cole Shelton - June 4, 2025

UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili plans to make a statement at UFC 316. Dvalishvili is set to rematch Sean O’Malley on Saturday night in an intriguing fight. Dvalishvili won a clear-cut decision to defeat O’Malley and become the bantamweight champ last September.

Cole Shelton - June 4, 2025

In the main event of UFC 316 in Newark, New Jersey, the bantamweight title is up for grabs as Merab Dvalishvili defends his belt against Sean O’Malley in a rematch of their fight last September. Heading into the fight, Dvalishvili is a -310 favorite while ‘Suga’ is a +230 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the scrap at UFC 316, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the bantamweight title fight. The pros believe Dvalishvili will be too much for O’Malley again as he will be able to take ‘Suga’ down and get a decision win to defend his belt.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 4, 2025

One all-time bantamweight great isn’t upset about G.O.A.T. talks surrounding Merab Dvalishvili. While Dvalishvili has only had one successful title defense thus far, his work against elite competition prior to fighting for the UFC bantamweight gold has left some convinced that “The Machine” is the greatest bantamweight ever. The list of names Dvalishvili defeated before receiving his first crack at UFC gold included Jose Aldo, Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan, and Marlon Moraes.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 3, 2025

Merab Dvalisvhili has an idea of who his next title challenger will be should he defeat Sean O’Malley a second time. Dvalishvili is looking for his second successful defense of the UFC Bantamweight Championship. He scored a unanimous decision victory over O’Malley to capture the gold, and followed that up with a successful title defense over Umar Nurmagomedov. Dvalishvili is expecting a competitive fight against “Suga” in their rematch.

Cole Shelton - June 2, 2025

Sean O’Malley isn’t a fan of Merab Dvalishvili and the way he fights at UFC 316. O’Malley is set to rematch Dvalishvili in their fight back in September, which Dvalishvili won by decision to become the bantamweight champion. It was a disappointing result for O’Malley, who’s now looking to reclaim his belt.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 1, 2025

A top UFC commentator believes Merab Dvalishvili has already cemented himself as the greatest bantamweight of all time. Dvalishvili may have just one successful UFC bantamweight title defense, but his road to the title featured wins over elite competition. Before capturing gold, Dvalishvili had victories over UFC Hall of Famer Jose Aldo, former two-division champion Henry Cejudo, and former UFC bantamweight titleholder Petr Yan.