UFC star Sean O'Malley forced to 'level up' ahead of massive rematch
Sean O'Malley's coach Tim Welch has opened up on the impact of the bantamweight king's defeat to Merab Dvalishvili ahead of the pair's eagerly-anticipated rematch
Sean O'Malley's long-time coach Tim Welch claims the American's defeat to Merab Dvalishvili forced the former champion to "level up."
O'Malley clinched the bantamweight title in 2023 with a knockout victory over Aljamain Sterling and then retained his title against Marlon Vera. But in his second defence of the 135lb title, 'Suga' was thoroughly outclassed by Dvalishvili.
Since their first bout, O'Malley hasn't stepped back into the octagon, while Dvalishvili went on to defend the coveted gold prize earlier this year against Umar Nurmagomedov. The two are set to clash again next month, topping the bill at the highly anticipated UFC 316 event on June 7.
Ahead of the mouthwatering sequel, 'Suga' changed his ways, and according to the American's long-time coach, the loss had a significant impact on O'Malley, especially compared to when the 30-year-old fell short against Vera in 2020. "I've seen it a lot after a fighter loses — it literally just demoralises them," Welch said on the Ariel Helwani show.
"You see their confidence go away. But with Sean, he's not like that. He's a mentally very strong kid, and I knew for a fact that he was going to figure out, 'what's going to be the best mentality I can have after this,' and he's going to do that. It forced him to change a lot of things in his life, and it forced him to just kind of level up. It did kind of humble both of us and it forced us to level up, so his mindset has been so good.
"His happiness doesn't come from winning or losing his fights. His happiness comes from his relationships with his family and his health and stuff. So I knew the type of kid he is - I'm around him enough. It's not like he went out there and got his ass kicked [by Dvalishvili]. He didn't walk out of there with black eyes and bruised ribs, a cut face. He was more healthy after that fight, I think, than any of our other fights. Tactical mistakes, [he] got tired, was super bummed out for a little bit, but it definitely woke up a different 'Sugar.'"
With only a few weeks left until the showdown, UFC commentator Joe Rogan predicts a challenging night for O'Malley. Dvalishvili, renowned for his relentless style and exceptional cardio, managed six takedowns and had 10 minutes of control time over 'Suga' in their initial bout.
Ahead of the rematch, Rogan wonders how O'Malley will manage to keep the champion at a distance. "That's an interesting fight," Rogan said during a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience. "Very interesting fight. I do not know how 'Suga' Sean keeps that guy off of him... He's a f****** animal."
"That guy's superhuman. There's no one like him. The cardio that guy has is off the charts. It's just off the charts. I've never seen anything like it. He doesn't get tired. He's full gas, no brakes the entire fight. It's just smothering, overwhelming people. Even [Umar] Nurmagomedov, who's also an animal. He couldn't keep [Dvalishvili] off of him. This m*********** crazy."
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