Merab Dvalishvili has defended his upcoming UFC 298 opponent Henry Cejudo against comments made by Sean O’Malley, who suggested Cejudo was fighting for money rather than legacy, and said he is preparing for a tough fight against the multi-time champion.
Merab Dvalishvili’s got a big fight coming up against Henry Cejudo at UFC 298. For now, though, he’s got his opponent’s back.
Why? Well, it’s all thanks to some comments made by Sean O’Malley, the current UFC bantamweight champion. O’Malley recently predicted Dvalishvili would win, mainly because Cejudo was “broke” and “doesn’t have any money.” He suggested Cejudo needed the paycheck.
Dvalishvili didn’t take too kindly to that. He thinks it’s wrong to suggest a prize fighter is only after the prize, especially when it comes to someone like Cejudo. After all, Cejudo’s got a long list of achievements, including an Olympic gold medal in wrestling and titles in two different UFC divisions.
“I just saw O’Malley tweet something about ‘Henry is fighting for money.’ That’s bulls***,” Dvalishvili told MMA Fighting. “We’re fighting for legacy. Henry Cejudo is fine. He’s a multi-time champion, a two-division UFC champ. He’s doing okay. I don’t think he’s fighting for money. He’s fighting for legacy, he’s a champion. He loves gold, that’s all he wants.”
Dvalishvili is preparing for a strong Cejudo. “I’m ready physically, mentally and I’m going to show the world again,” he said.
Now, Dvalishvili does agree with something Cejudo said leading up to their fight. After losing to former champ Aljamain Sterling, Cejudo didn’t mince words about the importance of winning against Dvalishvili. At 37, Cejudo knows his time in the sport is limited. He acknowledged that the fight at UFC 298 is “all or nothing” for his career.
A win gets him a title shot. A loss? Well, that might mean retirement.
“Think about this,” Dvalishvili said. “If I beat Henry Cejudo, he’s not going to keep fighting down the ladder. If he loses, he needs like three more wins for a title conversation. If he beats me, he’ll fight for the title. This is a big moment for him. He’ll do everything to beat me.”
Some might see Cejudo’s talk of retirement as a weakness. Dvalishvili doesn’t. He points to his past fight against Jose Aldo. Aldo was on a three-win streak with a shot at gold in his sights. But Dvalishvili beat him, and Aldo announced his retirement.
Cejudo faces the same reality if he loses at UFC 298. Dvalishvili thinks Cejudo’s acknowledgement of this proves it’s not just about the money for him.
“When I beat Jose Aldo, he said he’s out,” Dvalishvili said. “He’s not going to keep cutting weight and winning again. He was on a three fight win streak and wanted another title. When I beat him, he lost the chance at another title and didn’t want to keep fighting all the contenders. Same thing with Henry.”
“If I beat him, I’ll fight for the title and Henry will wait. If I become champion, Henry has to keep fighting other guys. That means he’s not fighting for money. He’s fighting for legacy. He wants only gold. He can’t fight forever. He did well against Aljo, it was a close fight. Aljo beat him but Henry Cejudo, he’s still got it. He’s not fighting for money. He’s fighting for legacy. He wants just gold.”
Dvalishvili knows the stakes are high. He’s expecting the toughest challenge possible because Cejudo has painted this as a do-or-die fight for him.
He knows Cejudo will leave no stone unturned. That’s why he’s doing the same, to leave nothing to chance when they step into the octagon on Saturday night.
“[It’s] a good mindset to win, it’s everything or nothing,” Dvalishvili said. “It’s the best mindset. Honestly, it’s nothing surprising. I’m sure he can do many other things. He has so many opportunities in life but he’s not going to chase the belt again because it’s going to take so long, especially with injuries and how hard we are training and he has a family now.”
“I’m sure preparation is good and he put everything into this training camp. He’s going to do everything to beat me but I’m going to make sure I’m the winner on Feb. 17.”