Sean O’Malley’s coach shares surprising comments on Merab Dvalishvili ahead of UFC 316

Merab Dvalishvili has received some surprising comments from Sean O’Malley’s head coach.

It’s no secret that there’s some gamesmanship between Dvalishvili and O’Malley’s team. With that said, there is also mutual respect between both sides. Dvalishvili defeated O’Malley to become the UFC Bantamweight Champion back in Sept. 2024. O’Malley’s coach Tim Welch recently remarked that the lights inside the Las Vegas Sphere caused his fighter to miss a good portion of his strikes.

While some believe that Welch was trolling with his comments, he does actually have some praise for Dvalishvili.

RELATED: MERAB DVALISHVILI TEASES RIVAL SEAN O’MALLEY IN CHAMPION’S LATEST SKIT

O’Malley’s Coach Praises Merab

During an interview with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Tim Welch was asked if he believes Merab Dvalishvili should be considered the best bantamweight of all time. The head coach of Sean O’Malley didn’t disagree.

“I don’t really know how you debate that Merab’s not the best now of all time” Welch said. “Just look at his record. Has there ever been a bantamweight who’s beat that many champions in a row? I don’t think there has. So, it’s pretty easy to say that Merab’s the best bantamweight ever right now.”

Dvalishvili and O’Malley will collide again in the main event of UFC 316 in Newark. The event will be held on June 7. “The Machine” is looking for his second successful title defense. He defeated Umar Nurmagomedov via unanimous decision in the co-headliner for UFC 311 back in January.

As for O’Malley, he hasn’t been in action since suffering the loss to Dvalishvili. “Sugar” had been recovering after undergoing surgery for a torn labrum in his left hip. O’Malley claims he’s made significant changes in his lifestyle to focus on recapturing UFC gold. He has even greatly reduced his social media activity, which has been a major part of his brand.