Merab Dvalishvili brought the Suga Show to a screeching halt, defeating Sean O’Malley by unanimous decision to capture the bantamweight championship Saturday night at Noche UFC.
— Merab Dvalishvili put an emphatic end to « The Suga Show » with a smothering unanimous decision win over Sean O’Malley to claim the UFC bantamweight title Saturday night in the main event of Noche UFC at The Sphere.
Dvalishvili used constant movement, six takedowns and just over 10 minutes of control time to befuddle and prevent O’Malley from uncorking one of his fight-ending punches. It was a dominant performance that lacked the fireworks fans expected after witnessing a highly produced spectacle of an event.
« I know he was good, but I made him look normal », said Dvalishvili (18-4 MMA, 11-2 UFC). « I am the best bantamweight in the UFC. »
O’Malley (18-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) was making the second defense of his 135-pound title but struggled to find any momentum throughout the fight outside of a few front kicks to the body in the closing minutes. Despite scores of 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47, Dvalishvili was in control for nearly every minute.
