Merab Dvalishvili’s coach, John Wooden, believes Sean O’Malley will deteriorate mentally quicker than physically.
Dvalishvili will face O’Malley in the co-main event of UFC 306 on September 14 at the Sphere in Las Vegas for the highly anticipated bantamweight title. While Dvalishvili has previously vowed to knock O’Malley out, Wood has a more realistic prediction for the bout. The Syndicate MMA head coach believes Dvalishvili will gain the upper hand after the second round, apply his signature pressure and ultimately win by unanimous decision. Wood also believes beating “Sugar” mentally will be easier than beating him physically.
“A smart bet? I’m betting on Merab by a five-round decision,” Wood recently told Red Corner MMA. “I think we’ll be in control from the second round onwards and Merab will fight with all his might, but it’s going to be a technical issue, and I think we’re putting more pressure on Sean than he can handle. Not that he can’t handle it. He’ll be hard to beat physically, but I think he can mentally, and I think Merab will win this fight by a five-round decision.”
Wood also praised Dvalishvili as being very coachable. The former middleweight fighter said that while it may seem like “The Machine” isn’t absorbing the lessons well at first, Dvalishvili applies them well in each fight. And Wood said the proof is in the Georgian’s recent wins over top opponents.
“He learns and listens so well,” Wood said. “What’s funny is that we’re in the same room and I’m teaching him something and we’re practicing privately and he doesn’t seem to understand. The next day he’s doing it perfectly live. You have to learn to a certain extent to teach, but he’s a guy that does what you tell him to do. And as evidenced by his last few fights, the last three or four fights, he’s getting more comfortable going up against stronger opponents.”
Dvalishvili is currently on a 10-fight winning streak, with his past three victories coming by unanimous decision over former champions Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan and Jose Aldo.
