While Sean O'Malley’s immediate future remains uncertain, Merab Dvalishvili’s coach, John Wood, advises against a featherweight move.
O’Malley’s short bantamweight title reign ended with a unanimous decision loss against Dvalishvili last year. “Suga” got a chance at redemption in a rematch at UFC 316 last weekend in Newark, New Jersey. Dvalishvili dominated O’Malley for two rounds before submitting him in the third.
With consecutive title losses against Dvalishvili, O’Malley is far removed from the title picture as long as the Georgian remains champion. Considering he’ll have to fight down the rankings now, O’Malley must return to the drawing board.