Sean O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch, isn’t budging from his stance on his UFC 306 defeat.
Former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley will get the chance at revenge when he faces current titleholder Merab Dvalishvili in the UFC 316 main event next week in Newark. O’Malley gets an immediate second chance at defeating Dvalishvili after a unanimous decision loss at UFC 306 in September.
O’Malley has made a slew of personal life changes in the lead-up to UFC 316, promising a different outcome when he and Dvalishvili reunite inside the cage. After recovering from a hip injury, and eliminating several vices, O’Malley feels rejuvenated with the chance to reclaim the bantamweight title.
Dvalishvili’s elite wrestling frustrated O’Malley from start-to-finish in their first fight; an approach which may repeat itself at UFC 316. But O’Malley’s coach is glad that they won’t have to deal with another fight night element in the Dvalishvili rematch.
Coach Tim Welch defends head-scratching comments about Sean O’Malley’s loss at UFC 306
O’Malley’s longtime coach Tim Welch ruffled some feathers when he blamed O’Malley’s UFC 306 loss on the lighting at the Las Vegas Sphere. It was the first time the UFC had held an event at the state-of-the-art arena, featuring massive screens and unique lighting throughout the venue.
In a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, coach Welch defended his comments about the Las Vegas Sphere impacting O’Malley’s performance at UFC 306.
“It was just that whole night. You always see Sean when he gets in the octagon, he’ll get in the guy’s face, he’ll walk up to him with his arms open, and he has that aura about him. He didn’t do any of that,” Welch said of O’Malley.
“We didn’t really get to see the Sphere at all until we walked out of the cage and it felt quite a bit different. I don’t know if it was the Sphere that had to do with it, but just that night, it’s just something about it.
“We were meant to lose that fight and now it’s just gonna make this one that much sweeter.”
While O’Malley and Dvalishvili share a mutual respect for each other ahead of UFC 316, the same can’t be said about Dvalishvili and Welch. Before UFC 306, Dvalishvili threatened to assault Welch over comments he made mocking the then-bantamweight contender.
Things didn’t improve inside the cage at UFC 306, as Welch attempted to give Dvalishvili fake instructions before referee Herb Dean intervened.
UFC legend believes Sean O’Malley could make a drastic move with a loss at UFC 316
While O’Malley and Welch are supremely confident in their chances at UFC 316, a UFC legend believes it’s a ‘must-win’ situation for the former titleholder. Chael Sonnen thinks a loss at UFC 316 might force O’Malley to move to the featherweight division; a move the star has repeatedly mentioned throughout his career.
In the interview with Ariel Helwani referenced above, Welch admitted O’Malley is having an increasingly tougher time making the 135 lb weight limit now compared to earlier in his career. O’Malley previously teased a super fight with Ilia Topuria before Topuria vacated the featherweight title for a full-time move to lightweight.
If O’Malley wins at UFC 316, a trilogy with Dvalishvili would make a lot of sense for the next bantamweight title fight. Umar Nurmagomedov and other bantamweights are also waiting in the wings for another shot at the belt.
After O’Malley shared several vices he’s given up ahead of UFC 316, we’re days away from seeing the fruits of his labor.