UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili admits he delayed his UFC 316 rematch with Sean O’Malley to give ‘Suga’ the best chance to recover.
Some might think that Dvalishvili has been pushed into his title defenses too quickly, having defended his belt twice in nine months since winning it at UFC 306.
His immediate rematch with O’Malley has drawn scrutiny from fans, but ‘The Machine’ revealed that he’s giving O’Malley the best preparation for their fight.
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Stake Ambassador Dvalishvili told MMA Knockout that he could have fought O’Malley in Miami in April, since the UFC offered two dates. Remarkably, Dvalishvili accepted June in New Jersey to give O’Malley the best chance to prepare.
“They [UFC] was willing to give me a fight in April, in Miami,” Dvalishvili said. “They give you options, you know? They said, ‘You can either fight O’Malley in April, or in June, in New Jersey, and I said New Jersey because this time O’Malley has more time to recover from surgery.”
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O’Malley notoriously played the injury card after losing to Dvalishvili at UFC 306, revealing that he fought through a torn labrum. Dvalishvili wants no blips in the rematch.
“Yes [I want to fight the best version of O’Malley]. . . Before surgery he said he would be back in March or April, and I said let’s give him more time.”
Dvalishvili fights O’Malley in the main event of UFC 316 on June 6. Hopefully this time, both fighters can stay relatively injury-free, even if Dvalishvili is parading around a broken toe during the buildup.
Merab Dvalishvili names dream fight, snubs injury concerns ahead of UFC 316
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