Georgian bantamweight Merab Dvalishvili has taken his promotion for an upcoming event with Sean O’Malley to entertaining new heights. In a recent social media video, Dvalishvili impersonates O’Malley in a hilarious skit mocking O’Malley’s flamboyant personality and style.
The skit opens with Dvalishvili, doing his best O’Malley voice impression, chastising his opponent for smoking and not taking training seriously enough for their impending fight. “What are you doing smoking? We have a big fight coming up bro, you got to take this seriously,” Dvalishvili asks in a Suga Show-esque cadence.
He continues berating the fictional teammate about needing to work on cardio and going full rounds, rather than looking for flashy finishes. “I need your cardio bro…we got to fight full rounds. Usually I go and finish people, but I need killing cardio for this one.”
Dvalishvili also appears to be paying homage to the current UFC Heavyweight division standstill in which the champion, Jon Jones, is waiting perpetually for a legend vs legend bout instead of dealing with contenders.
The funniest part comes when Dvalishvili, still doing the O’Malley voice, recognizes his acting teammate isn’t the real Suga Show. “Who the f*** is this guy? Do you understand me bro? Do you understand my English? Do you recognize me now?” he squawks in an American accent.
Dvalishvili has been relentlessly calling for a fight with O’Malley after extending his winning streak to 10 fights. With O’Malley recently defending his bantamweight title, it seems that wish will be granted according to the champ himself.
While Dvalishvili may be poking fun at O’Malley’s persona, the Georgian wrestler likely knows stopping O’Malley’s creative striking will be no laughing matter when they finally meet in the Octagon.