UFC Bantamweight Champion Merab Dvalishvili isn’t holding back his feelings toward Sean O’Malley’s coach Tim Welch as he prepares for their highly anticipated rematch at UFC 316 on June 7 in Newark, New Jersey.
Despite a surprisingly cordial buildup compared to their first encounter, Dvalishvili made it clear during an appearance on “The Ariel Helwani Show” that while he harbors no ill will toward O’Malley himself, he still takes issue with Welch’s behavior.
“Tim made some big mistakes,” Dvalishvili said. “He should be a professional coach, but he’s not a professional coach. He tried to cheat. He’s a cheater coach. He tried disrespect, and that’s why I was talking trash.”
The Georgian specifically called out Welch for making personal comments about his appearance rather than focusing on strategy.
“When they ask Tim, he said, ‘Oh, I have a big nose and Sean will punch me all the time in my nose.’ And I’m like five, three or five, two. And he was making fun of my height,” Dvalishvili explained. “This is not his job to disrespect me. He should be focused on how to make his fighter better and how to defend takedowns, how to punch me, to knock me out, or how to submit me.”
Dvalishvili, who defeated O’Malley via unanimous decision at UFC 306 in September to claim the bantamweight title, questioned Welch’s corner tactics during their first bout.
“When you’re coaching your guy or your student in the fight, you should be focused on how to hit hard, how to wrestling, how to do submission, not like coach other guy,” Dvalishvili said. “They cheat and make him upset, make him reaction, make him do mistake. Like he was trying to do against Aljamain Sterling. He was trying to do with me.”
The champion expressed confusion at O’Malley and Welch’s recent complimentary comments about him on their podcast, admitting it created a strange feeling.
“It was weird, because they were talking so nice to me,” Dvalishvili said. “Of course, everybody likes compliments, but it was weird feeling. I feel like a friend with them. Even Tim, the guy I don’t like, when he was talking nice, my heart warmed a little bit. Like, no, no, don’t do this, guys. I need to be mad about you.”
Despite the personal issues with Welch, Dvalishvili respects O’Malley as a fighter and expects a completely different challenge in their rematch.
“O’Malley, he hits hard. Even when he just touched me a little bit, I felt his power. The guy can crack,” Dvalishvili acknowledged. “I’m sure he will make adjustments and defend the takedowns better, then he will be going forward this time. It’s going to be a totally different fight.”
This upcoming bout will mark Dvalishvili’s second title defense after defeating Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 311 in January, while O’Malley returns after undergoing surgery for a torn labrum following their first encounter.
Dvalishvili aims to showcase more of his striking skills in the rematch, saying, “My goal will be to stop him, TKO him or knockout. It’s going to be a great fight, and I’m excited for it.”
