‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley has referenced his UFC 288 jacket in his latest jibe at bantamweight rival Merab Dvalishvili. O’Malley took his jacket off inside the octagon amid a confrontation with Aljamain Sterling at UFC 288 earlier this month.
Dvalishvili got his hands on the said jacket and subsequently refused to return it to ‘Sugar.’ The Georgian fighter has been lightheartedly bragging about stealing O’Malley’s jacket ever since.
Additionally, in his latest interview with social media influencer and MMA personality Nina-Marie Daniele, Merab Dvalishvili noted that he plans on keeping the jacket until his friend Sterling beats O’Malley. Dvalishvili said:
“Okay. How about this? I’m going to wear this (jacket) until ‘Aljo’ beat O’Malley…So, I’m keeping this jacket until ‘Aljo’ beats O’Malley…Maybe we should do collaboration — We should sell (the jacket), your Instagram, my Instagram. And we should put this post we are selling this jacket.”
Watch Dvalishvili discuss the topic below:
Sean O’Malley has now taken to Twitter to address his stolen jacket. The 135-pound KO artist suggested that he handed the jacket to Merab Dvalishvili.
He indicated that giving the jacket to Dvalishvili has been the most exciting moment of the latter’s career. Insinuating that ‘The Machine’s’ career severely lacks exciting moments, O’Malley tweeted:
“The most exciting moment in Merabs career was when I gave him my jacket to hold.”
‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley weighs in on UFC title fight against Aljamain Sterling
UFC bantamweight contender Merab Dvalishvili is recovering from a hand injury and is expected to be out of action until the end of this year.
Meanwhile, his friend and teammate, reigning UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling, is scheduled to defend his title against longtime rival Sean O’Malley at UFC 292 on August 19, 2023.
In a recent appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Sean O’Malley said that he most definitely has the skills required to defeat Sterling.
He added that ‘Funk Master’ utilizes “weird” techniques in his fights, something that he would be prepared for. Vowing to snipe Sterling when they clash in their highly anticipated title showdown, O’Malley said:
“I’m gonna snipe this dude (Aljamain Sterling). … he’s very funky; he walks forward and throws some, you know, some weird sh*t, off-balance sh*t. And you know, I’m gonna be ready for that, and that’s where I’m gonna snipe him. I believe I have the tools to snipe him.”
Watch O’Malley address the topic at 58:10 in the video below: