Sean O'Malley has been advised to avoid fighting Merab Dvalishvili on his road to a UFC bantamweight title shot.
O'Malley, 28, is the No.1 contender at 135lb following his controversial decision win against former champion Petr Yan in October. 'Suga' wasn't even ranked in the top ten of the division heading into the fight but was able to leapfrog most of the top contenders by narrowingly beating Yan on the scorecards.
Despite his recent win and new position in the rankings, O'Malley is unlikely to receive a title shot as bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling is expected to defend his belt against Henry Cejudo next. O'Malley has been told not to fight No.3 ranked contender Dvalishvili in the meantime as UFC great Daniel Cormier thinks the fight is a bad matchup for 'Suga'.
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“There’s only one name I would steer clear of if I’m Sean O’Malley, and that’s Merab Dvalishvili,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “I believe that Merab and his pressure fighting style could present some matchup problems for O’Malley. Am I saying no he can’t win? Not at all. But I’m saying because of the wrestling, the pressure, you don’t want to be stuck in there with Merab. The dude’s a savage.
“I get being frustrated. But, Sean O’Malley, do not allow for the frustration to lead to bad decisions. I think the fight with Merab, when on the verge of a title fight, could be a bad decision. Yeah, he can win. Absolutely. I think the kid is as good as anyone. No one could have told me that this kid from the Contender Series will become this. It’s been great to see, and I don’t know when Sean will fight for the title, but I do know that when he does, it’ll be a massive moment for the UFC.”
Sterling, who has held the bantamweight title since last March, is expected to serve as the opponent for Cejudo's fighting return in March. Olympic gold medalist Cejudo retired from the UFC after knocking out Dominick Cruz in May 2020, but has been hinting at a return for months and looks to reclaim the title he never officially lost against 'Funkmaster'.
O'Malley has questioned why Sterling and Cejudo's fight has not yet been announced, stating on his podcast: "It drives me crazy, why is this not happening? Is it a weight thing, is it a lingering injury? I've got to get to the bottom of this, I'm going to have a private investigator follow them both around (jokingly).
