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Is Sean O’Malley Ready For Merab?

hasib

7 June 2025

Henry Cejudo has heard that Sean O’Malley is cutting corners for his UFC 316 rematch with Merab Dvalishvili on June 7.

O’Malley lost their first fight by a unanimous decision at UFC 306, which cost him his bantamweight title and marked his second UFC defeat. The weight cuts have become tougher for O’Malley, sparking talk that he might move up to 145 pounds. O’Malley also admitted he was dealing with an injury before the Merab fight. Ahead of UFC 316, Cejudo, a former two-division UFC champion, said he’s heard rumors that O’Malley is cutting costs in his fight camp.

"I think the biggest thing with O’Malley is, did he formulate his camp correctly? There’s a lot of birdies out there. I’m going to say it here on Pound 4 Pound: He’s just working jiu-jitsu. He’s not working his get-ups, his stand-ups. He’s not investing in his camp, he’s not bringing in guys for money. In Arizona, they have big mouths.

"It’s true, it’s 100-percent true. It [money] shouldn’t be [a concern], but to him, he just wants to keep everything. I don’t know, maybe he’s cheap. He just wants to keep everything in house. When you do that, sh*t gets out there. That’s the only reason why I know some of these things. People, listen to me: Bet the house, Merab Dvalishvili via damn decision, 50-45," Cejudo said.

However, O’Malley made weight at 135 pounds, showing he had taken his camp seriously. Meanwhile, Merab also hit the scales at 134 pounds, with only Ariane da Silva missing the flyweight limit by six pounds for her bout with Wang Cong. The fight will still happen, but de Silva will forfeit some of her purse.