Much like the slew of world champions behind him, Sean O’Malley couldn’t fine an answer to Merab Dvalishvili’s relentless pressure.
On Saturday inside the spectacular Sphere in Las Vegas, the now former bantamweight champion was outpointed across five rounds by the Georgian buzzsaw as a new pacesetter was declared in the UFC 135-pound fold.
O’Malley joins a heady list of fighters who have wilted under Dvalishvili’s pressure in recent fights, including Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan and Jose Aldo.
The American had predicted beforehand that his sniping style of long-range striking would catch Dvalishvili as he attempted to close the distance — but save for a late teep that appeared to trouble his opponent in the final seconds of the bout, it was Dvalishvili whose gameplan proved the more effective, ending O’Malley’s title reign after just one defence.
Afterwards, O’Malley took to social media to offer his thoughts on the bout.
Over promised under delivered. Sorry. Love you guys.
— Sean O’Malley (@SugaSeanMMA) September 15, 2024
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“Over promised under delivered,” he wrote on the platform formerly known as Twitter. “Sorry. Love you guys.”
He also posted to Instagram soon after the contest showing him working on his takedown defence, after he was dragged to the mat on six occasions throughout the fight. The official UFC stats also show that Dvalishvili outlanded his opponent by 214 to 49 — with the majority of those blows coming on the ground following a takedown.
