Sean O’Malley laughed off Merab Dvalishvili‘s prank of wearing his jacket during a post-fight faceoff, stating he thought Dvalishvili was his “coat guy” and even offered to let him keep the jacket.
Sean O’Malley couldn’t help but laugh at Merab Dvalishvili’s prank during the UFC 288 event, even though it was aimed at him. Dvalishvili, a close friend and teammate of Sterling, played a prank on O’Malley after Sterling successfully defended his bantamweight title with a split decision over Henry Cejudo. O’Malley entered the octagon wearing a Michael Jackson-inspired jacket that was removed as he squared up with Sterling. Dvalishvili soon appeared wearing O’Malley’s jacket, smirking mischievously.
On The MMA Hour, O’Malley spoke about how easily Dvalishvili managed to pull off the prank and his thoughts on the matter. “I thought that dude was my coat guy,” O’Malley said. “I had a coat guy on the night because I knew I was going to take my jacket off, but they didn’t let him in there, so I thought Merab was the coat dude. I had it to Merab, so I can’t even be mad at Merab. I don’t think he’s quite all there, so I don’t want to be a bully, but yeah, he’s a funny character.” When asked if he was angry, O’Malley insisted he wasn’t bothered at all and even offered to let Dvalishvili keep the jacket. “To be honest, he looked good in that jacket,” O’Malley said. “I might send it to him, he probably needs a nice little fashion.”
It’s understandable if O’Malley appeared preoccupied during the faceoff, given the high stakes involved. After winning against Petr Yan in October, O’Malley has been waiting as the No. 1 contender for Sterling’s bantamweight championship. He entered the octagon determined to make an impression on Sterling but also attempted to rile up Cejudo. If Cejudo decides to compete again rather than return to retirement, the former two-division champion already has his sights set on Dvalishvili. O’Malley believes a match between Cejudo and Dvalishvili makes sense while he deals with Sterling.
O’Malley is confident that he’ll face Dvalishvili in the future, but he’s also interested in settling the score with past opponent Marlon “Chito” Vera if he gets to choose his first title defense. “Merab’s going to stick around for a long time, I do believe that, so that fight’s going to happen regardless,” O’Malley said. “I go out there and beat the best guy in the division, potentially the bantamweight GOAT in Aljo, give me an easy fight. Give me Chito. Hopefully, he can go out there and get a win. Obviously, coming off a loss that doesn’t make sense, but I go out there and beat the best dude I’d like if they gave me a little bit easier fight. Give me Chito.”