The UFC bantamweight division has become one of the most competitive and exciting weight classes in recent years. Merab Dvalishvili claimed the championship by defeating Sean O’Malley, who is now determined to secure an immediate rematch. However, Cory Sandhagen and former champion Aljamain Sterling argue that a rematch for O’Malley doesn’t make sense at this time.
Aljamain Sterling, who recently moved to the featherweight division, is a close friend and training partner of Merab Dvalishvili. He recently stated that O’Malley vs. Dvalishvili title rematch would be a hard fight to sell. Recently, bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen also took to social to share a similar opinion and called out O’Malley for a fight.
Let’s be real, O’Malley has no business fighting Merab for an immediate rematch. He got beat up in the first fight and he’s going to get beat up in the second fight. No one wants to see that fight, and I’m not booked yet! I want to fight, I’m so damn bored.
Cory Sandhagen via Instagram
Sandhagen was initially on the path to fight for the title, but, lost his progress after his loss to Umar Nurmagomedov. The ‘Sandman’ has been calling out O’Malley for a long time now and believes the fight will attract the fans. O’Malley, on the other hand, has taken a break from social media to work on himself and prepare for the title shot.
Cory Sandhagen calls out Sean O’Malley 👀
“O’Malley has no business fighting Merab for an immediate rematch. He got beat up in the first fight, he’s gonna get beat up in the second fight.”
🎥 @corysandhagenx #UFC #MMApic.twitter.com/9f3sYW4SbU
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) January 23, 2025
Sean O’Malley was present at the recent UFC 311 co-main event to witness the much-anticipated title clash between Dvalishvili and Nurmagomedov. When he fought the Georgian the bout went for five rounds and Dvalishvili came out as the winner via unanimous decision. The result was quite similar at UFC 311 too, as Team Khabib star got handed a loss.
Aljamain Sterling talks about Merab Dvalishvili vs. Umar Nurmagomedov
Going into the fight, there was severe bad blood between Merab Dvalishvili and Umar Nurmagomedov. According to the champion, the Dagestani star had disrespected him by calling him a fake champion. Nurmagomedov, on the other hand, didn’t believe Dvalishvili’s skills were enough to beat.
Merab Dvalishvili vs. Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 311 (via X)Skillwise, both fighters have a competitive showdown. However, it was the cardio in the last rounds that made the real difference. Nurmagomedov looked helpless as he tried his best to keep up with the monster stamina of Dvalishvili. Aljamain Sterling recently talked about the fight and shared his opinion on the challenger’s performance.
You gotta fight the ranked opponents. Otherwise, you don’t know who you really are. Until you got there and you find out that you’re not the guy yet.
Aljamain Sterling via FULL SEND MMA
Umar Nurmagomedov, however, wasn’t convinced that he lost the bout. The fighter also shared images of his broken arm which affected his performance throughout the rounds. The Dagestani has promised to make a return and many believe he has the potential to win the title in the future.
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