Israel Adesanya did not anticipate the overwhelming performance from Merab Dvalishvili against Sean O’Malley at UFC 316, held at the Prudential Center on June 7. Dvalishvili submitted O’Malley with a choke in the third round, marking the bantamweight champion’s second victory over ‘Suga’ in just eight months. Previously, Dvalishvili had dethroned O’Malley at UFC 306 last September.
In their latest bout, Dvalishvili, who had previously needed the judges’ decision, surprised many by finishing the fight before it reached the championship rounds after showcasing his dominance early on. Adesanya, who had recently trained alongside O’Malley, was taken aback by the outcome.
Shortly after Dvalishvili’s successful title defense, Adesanya shared his live reactions to UFC 316 on YouTube. Having spent considerable time with O’Malley leading up to the fight, Adesanya held a strong belief in O’Malley’s abilities to win.
During the early moments of the match, Adesanya observed, “I like the stance. How did Merab straight away just put him behind the line? Sean has to get back on the offensive.” He expressed his support for O’Malley, saying, “Let’s go Sean…I thought the knee was going to land…good job, Sean.”
As Dvalishvili launched an attack on O’Malley’s neck, Adesanya reacted with disbelief, stating, “F—k off, no! F—k, he’s good. You’ve gotta give it up, man. He’s just good, bro, so good. Merab is that guy. You just can’t f—king fault him. Sean did better, he did well…but Merab, just f—king like a steam engine, just keeps coming.”
Adesanya had gone into the fight anticipating a second-round knockout from O’Malley. In a prediction video released during fight week, ‘The Last Stylebender’ noted the preparations O’Malley made, saying, “Me and Sean, we’re cool. He reminds me of myself… He’s done the work… It’s a hard fight, but I’m gonna go Sean O’Malley. Because I believe, I believe, I believe, man… It’s gonna be the return to ‘The Suga Show’. Knockout, round two.”
Now, both Adesanya and O’Malley are facing the challenge of bouncing back from their defeats as they prepare for future bouts in the Octagon.