Merab Dvalishvili vs Sean O’Malley at UFC 316 | Preview & Prediction
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We have a blockbuster of a main event at UC 316 with a rematch for the bantamweight title as Merab Dvalishvili puts it on the line against former champ Sean O’Malley
Merab Dvalishvili vs Sean O’Malley Facts
What time are Merab Dvalishvili and Sean O’Malley expected to walk out?
Where is UFC 316? Prudential Center, Newark, USA
Where can I get tickets for UFC 316? Click here for the latest ticket information for UFC 316
What TV channel is UFC 316 on? UK – TNT Sports / USA – ESPN+
Where can I stream UFC 316? UK – TNT Sports subscribers can stream the event online via the TNT Sports website and discovery+ / USA – ESPN+ & UFC Fight Pass
UFC 316 main card
Merab Dvalishvili vs Sean O'Malley (Bantamweight)
Julianna Pena vs Kayla Harrison (Women’s Bantamweight)
Kelvin Gastelum vs Joe Pyfer (Middleweight)
Mario Bautista vs Patchy Mix (Bantamweight)
Vicente Luque vs Kevin Holland (Welterweight)
UFC 316 prelims
Bruno Silva vs Joshua Van (Flyweight)
Azamat Murzakanov vs Brendson Ribeiro (Light Heavyweight)
Serghei Spivac vs Waldo Cortes-Acosta (Heavyweight)
Kalinn Williams vs Andreas Gustafsson (Welterweight)
Ariane da Silva vs Wang Cong (Women’s Flyweight)
Jeka Saragih vs Yoo Joo-sang (Featherweight)
Quillan Salkilld vs Yanal Ashmouz (Lightweight)
MarQuel Mederos vs Mark Choinski (Lightweight)
Merab Dvalishvili vs Sean O’Malley prediction
Merab Dvalishvili (19-4) returns to action to defend his bantamweight belt and he looks to extend his 12-fight winning streak. The Georgian star has been on an incredible run on his way to the title and he shows no signs of slowing down neither.
After beating O’Malley last September at UFC 306, Merab defended his belt with an emphatic unanimous decision win over Umar Nurmagomedov in January at UFC 311. He returns to action once again and will look to continue his fine run.
Sean O’Malley (18-2 with one no contest) returns for the first time since he lost his belt as he had surgery on a torn labrum after losing the belt to Merab.
Since that loss, O’Malley has made several changes to his lifestyle and clearly made some decisions to really help him kick on once again. It will be interesting to see if they have an impact for this fight.
While Merab was the clear winner of the first fight, it was still close and O’Malley can take positives from that. He will be confident of being able to make some technical and tactical changes to try change the flow this time around.
That of course is easier said than done against the relentless Dvalishvili. The champion will be aware of it and will likely prepare for a better version of O’Malley. He was dominant against Nurmagomedov and that will only enhance his confidence further.
O’Malley is quite a big underdog according to the bookies and we think this fight will be much closer than that. However, we do not see him winning and just think Merab has the edge once again.
Prediction: Merab Dvalishvili to win by decision
