Sean O’Malley lost to Merab Dvalishvili for one key reason, according to an MMA icon.
On June 7, ‘Suga’ fell short once again to his Georgian foe, at UFC 316, inside the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, USA, via third-round submission.
Following the contest, Dvalishvili shared a heartwarming celebration with Kayla Harrison, while O’Malley headed back to the locker room brokenhearted.
However, in the eyes of a former title challenger, there was little he could’ve done to have overcome ‘The Machine’.
WOW: Merab Dvalishvili swarmed by fans during open-top bus parade in Georgia after UFC 316 win
Chael Sonnen says Merab Dvalishvili has gotten even better since his first fight with Sean O’Malley
Chael Sonnen believes Sean O’Malley produced the best performance of his career last weekend.
However, while he claims his countryman improved areas of his game, he thinks Merab Dvalishvili has made even greater leaps.
In a video uploaded to his YouTube channel, ‘The American Gangster’ exclaimed: “Sean O’Malley put on his best performance ever. He fixed his wrestling, he fixed his scrambling, he created big problems for Merab. So, why did he get finished?
“Teddy Atlas says, ‘The night a guy wins a world championship, he will get 30% better, but sometimes even more’. That’s what we saw.
“Merab did better against an opponent who did 10% better. I can’t give Merab his praise, even with a bias, I can’t do it, unless you understand how good O’Malley fought.”
Daniel Cormier called out after making interesting take during Merab Dvalishvili vs Sean O’Malley
The fight between O’Malley and Dvalishvili was notable for many reasons.
With the legend doing the double over his rival, he’s carving out a legacy to rival that of the great Dominick Cruz.
Throughout the contest, he looked nothing short of sensational.
In a stunning moment, Dvalishvili almost instantly made Daniel Cormier eat his words.