UFC star Sean O’Malley‘s head coach Tim Welch has given his thoughts on when ‘Suga’ could make his return to the cage.
As we know, Sean O’Malley is one of the biggest names in all of mixed martial arts. However, in his last two fights, he’s been unable to stop the incredible rise of Merab Dvalishvili. He lost his UFC bantamweight championship to him in their first meeting, and then in the rematch, Sean was submitted by Dvalishvili as the Georgian sensation continued his reign at the top of the division.
As we look ahead to the future, it’s hard to know exactly what the next step is for Sean O’Malley. He’s certainly good enough to still compete at 135 pounds, but others are of the belief that a shift up to featherweight would be in his best interests.
In a video on his YouTube channel, Tim Welch was more than happy to discuss the next move for Sean O’Malley.
Tim Welch discusses Sean O’Malley’s future
“It’s so hard to say with him but again, right now we’re not going to clubs, we’re not f*cking partying, we’re saying no to trips. So what else are we going to do?” Welch said on his YouTube channel about O’Malley fighting again.
“We’re coming to the gym twice a day. We’re going to train. Might as well [fight]. Might as well not let these years go by. He’s only 30 years old. Might as well just knock them out. Let’s just keep knocking them out.”
“Look at Nate Diaz, how big of a star he is,” Welch said. “How many losses does he have? Jorge Masvidal, how many losses does he have? They’re still just f*cking huge draws. Huge stars.”
The coach of former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley has become the latest to accuse Henry Cejudo of looking for a way out of his fight with Song Yadong on Saturday night.
Inside Climate Pledge Arena, Cejudo fell to a third straight loss since returning from retirement. His latest setback came at the hands of “The Kung Fu Kid” in the main event of this weekend’s UFC Fight Night in Seattle.
As is often the case when a foul leads to a no contest or technical decision, Cejudo has received backlash from some for how the main event on Feb. 22 concluded.
Some have accused the 2008 Olympic gold medalist of quitting, disregarding his claim of compromised vision. Among them is Tim Welch, who’s best known for coaching a bantamweight rival of Cejudo’s in O’Malley.
The coach of Sean O’Malley believes the former UFC bantamweight champion can be the “kryptonite” to Merab Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili returned four months on from his victory over O’Malley to be crowned champ this past weekend, defending the title for the first time opposite undefeated challenger Umar Nurmagomedov.
The Georgian enhanced his legacy on MMA’s biggest stage with a massive victory in the UFC 311 co-headliner, utilizing his renowned cardio and pace to outpoint his Dagestani rival across five rounds.
With the result, “The Machine” is now being firmly discussed in the division’s GOAT conversation, and many have questioned who has what it takes to unseat him at 135 pounds.
According to coach Tim Welch, the one hope is O’Malley.
“(Dvalishvili) is on a streak, I’ll tell you what,” Welch said in a video uploaded to his YouTube channel. “You could tell after that fourth round that Umar was seriously gassed; he was really tired. He did a good job wrestling. Merab was shooting a ton and Umar was doing a great job at stuffing all of his shots. If he did hit his butt, he hit his butt just for a second and popped right up. But Merab just kept that pace and cardio on him. He’s got some cardio, I’ll tell you that.
“That last 30 seconds of the fight I think really made Merab win the fight. He’s a problem, he’s a big problem,” Welch continued. “But I do believe that we can be the kryptonite to Merab with the right game plan and a good fight camp. With ‘Suge’ healthy, I think we take him out. And we’ll find out, now won’t we?”
Soon after his decision defeat to the current champ inside the Sphere last September, O’Malley headed to the surgery room for a procedure to repair a torn labrum.
Targeting a return in the second quarter of 2025, “Suga” will hope to do so in the form of an opportunity at redemption opposite Dvalishvili.
Sean O’Malley’s coach is confident of seeing an improved iteration of the former UFC bantamweight champion following a change to his approach in 2025.
Not many fighters have been able to accumulate the kind of social media following and presence that O’Malley has since rising to prominent on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage. From YouTube and X to Instagram and Snapchat, “Suga” has long been active in building his brand online.
That result seems to have brought about a significant adjustment for “Suga” as he gears up for his pursuit of regaining the crown in 2025, with the Montana native revealing plans to take a break from social media.
During a recent appearance on Submission Radio, coach Tim Welch expressed his support for the decision, suggesting that an O’Malley who is focused on nothing but the cage will mark a dangerous proposition for his opponents.
“He’s worked so hard for years on these socials, and you’d be surprised by the amount of money he makes on them, it’s crazy, but it’s like, right now, to win in this top five, you’ve got to be focused on your training,” Welch said. “Being creative on Instagram, being creative on Snapchat, being creative on YouTube, and then worried about all your deliverables (and) when they’ll be posted – your mind’s thinking about all this stuff, and it takes more energy than you think.
“Every single person wants you on their podcast, every single person wants you at their party, celebs (and) athletes, they’re messaging you asking to hang out and you’re just taking all this in,” Welch continued. “So for him to put it all down, to put Snapchat down, to put Instagram down, put the YouTube down; he needs to do that and it’s going to be able to take him to the next level.”
While O’Malley is without a fight date in the calendar after undergoing surgery to repair a torn labrum post-title loss to Dvalishvili, he is expecting to return in competition for the bantamweight gold in quarter two of 2025.
If it was any other fighter, one may look at Merab Dvalishvili’s emotions heading into his first title defense and question whether it will impact his performance. However, we have seen several times that the current bantamweight champion will get incredibly fired-up both before, during and after he is inside the Octagon without it having any effect on his consistency.
Dvalishvili eventually agreed to fight Nurmagomedov at the earliest available date when he grew tired of being criticized for not taking the fight and feeling disrespected by his upcoming opponent. As the head coach of Sean O’Malley, Tim Welch has felt first-hand what it feels like to be in the unpredictable crosshairs of the 135-pound titleholder.
He gave his thoughts on Dvalishvili’s actions during a recent interview with Submission Radio having cornered against him this past September at UFC 306. Welch believes that whilst it was quite a sight to see how emotionally charged the champion was whilst he was on stage at the press conference, he thinks that the champ is the kind of fighter who seeks out this kind of atmosphere.
“Some people, they just want to get p***** about something. Maybe they fight better, maybe they train better, they want to get p***** about something but the stuff he gets p***** about, it’s like I don’t know if he’s a slow guy. I mean actually, you kind of know he’s a slow guy, everyone who knows him knows he’s not like the sharpest dude, but he must just want something to get fired up about. Like he’s p***** off at Umar, he’s saying, ‘Fight me right now, you disrespected me! We’re in the UFC and you want to fight me, I have the title and you want to fight me,’ and it looks like he’s about to start crying on the press conference. I’m like holy s***, this guy’s got some screws loose so it’s kind of normal seeing that but man, you can’t take it away from the guy. The guy is an animal, he is a beast.”
The first UFC pay-per-view for 2025, UFC 311, will be headlined by Islam Makhachev as he defends his lightweight title against Arman Tsarukyan. In the co-main event, Merab Dvalishvili will also aim to defend his UFC bantamweight title against Umar Nurmagomedov.
Two highly competitive title fights on a single card is naturally a delight for fans worldwide. However, it didn’t sit well with many when Nurmagomedov shed light on his arm injury leading up to UFC 311.
Early rumors suggested that the arm injury would stop him from competing this month. However, the Dagestani eventually agreed to fight “The Machine.” Even though X-ray reports suggested that he broke his arm, Nurmagomedov continued training and now feels fit enough to take part in his first UFC title fight.
Sean O’Malley is no stranger to enterting the Octagon with injuries. While discussing the topic in an interview for the Submission Radio YouTube channel, the former champ’s coach Tim Welch had an interesting take on why Nurmagomedov could be fighting with an injury at UFC 311.
“They know they’re going to get the title shot eventually. So, I don’t think he’s going to be that hurt. I think he’s probably going to be, probably more healthy and more ready than people think. And, yeah, it’s like I said, for these title shots, it’s like, for some people, you’ll get one title shot your whole career, the rest of your life. For Umar, with his last name, I feel like even if he lost this Merab fight, he wins two more, he gets back into the title picture.”
According to “Red Hawk,” being associated with the Nurmagomedov clan greatly benefits the UFC 311 title challenger. He stated that even if the undefeated bantamweight loses his first shot at the title, he’ll likely find himself in the same scenario with another win or two.
Welch thinks that having some of the best and most popular MMA fighters in his camp also ensures that Nurmagomedov’s decision to fight at UFC 311 is calculated. He expects the Dagestani team to stop Dvalishvili from getting into comfortable ground positions which will eventually affect his cardio.
UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria is the man of the moment right now following his knockout win over Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 308. In the past, there was a lot of people calling out “El Matador” but this has gone quiet following this recent performance.
The new UFC star has now beaten two great former champions in back-to-back fights, finishing both Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski. It wasn’t that long ago that the champion of the weight class below was eyeing up a fight with him.
Before Sean O’Malley lost his bantamweight belt to Merab Dvalishvili, who certainly isn’t going to fight Topuria, “Suga” had teased the idea of moving up in weight. Topuria appeared to welcome it but after what he did in Abu Dhabi at the weekend, O’Malley jokingly remarked that he’s no longer interested.
Despite this, O’Malley’s long time coach Tim Welch believes that the 135-pounder could cause Topuria some issues due to the strengths be brings to the table. Many are looking at the featherweight champion and his undefeated record as an unbeatable fighter in this current form.
Welch explained in a recent interview with Submission Radio why this is never the case and how O’Malley would be able to have success against him.
“No, I don’t think it’s past. I mean, you never know what’s going to happen in the UFC. It’s not impossible that Volkanovski goes out there and beats Ilia Topuria. I mean, that’s possible so you never know and I do think stylistically, Sean could give Ilia problems. He really could but Ilia Topuria is a very, very scary fight.
“That’s not a fight that you go in there and be like, ‘Oh yeah man we’re gonna…’, it’s like you make one mistake with Ilia Topuria and you’re going to be lights out, looking up at the ceiling or whatever but that’s a scary, scary fight. But I do believe that Sean, with his range and with his speed and with his, with his I mean, just his, his overall skill set, he could give Ilia problems. I do believe that.”
“Big” John McCarthy recently addressed Sean O’Malley’s coach after Tim Welch sought clarification on the controversial excessive coaching incident at UFC 306.
Dvalishvili secured a dominant unanimous decision victory over “Suga” to capture the bantamweight title at UFC 306 earlier this month. While the outcome was unquestionably clear at the end of the day, the fight took an unusual turn just moments after it began.
“The Machine” suddenly paused mid-action, gesturing furiously toward his opponent’s corner, prompting referee Herb Dean to step in. Dean reprimanded Dvalishvili for interrupting the match and also gave Welch a warning for overstepping his coaching boundaries, citing the ‘excessive coaching’ rule.
However, veteran referee McCarthy believes Welch’s actions crossed a line and constituted clear misconduct…
McCarthy Cautions Welch On Interference with Opponents During Fights
During a recent appearance on the WEIGHING IN podcast, Welch posed a question to McCarthy, asking how he would have handled the situation if a similar incident to UFC 306’s main event unfolded under his watch.
The renowned MMA referee responded candidly, stating that he would have swiftly issued Welch a stern warning. Furthermore, McCarthy made it clear that if the behavior persisted, he wouldn’t hesitate to eject Welch from the arena in accordance with official refereeing guidelines.
“I’m being honest, I would have talked to you in the beginning,” McCarthy said. “I would have said, ‘Hey, look, I need you to understand I cannot have you talking to the opponent in any fashion. So when you say ‘Merab, you’ve got to look out,’ even if it’s a call sign for you guys, you’re making it sound like you’re talking to the opponent. So right away, I would have said, ‘Hey, I’m telling you now, stop. We talked about this. If you do it again, I’m going to remove you from this arena,’ which I don’t want to do.”
“Obviously, that would affect your fighter and everything, so it’s the last thing you want to do. But yeah, it’s right in the rules that you can talk to Sean all you want, and we want you to be able to coach and talk to him and give him good, you know, feedback, but we cannot have you in any fashion talking to the opponent or talking to the referee during the round.”
Welch also faced significant backlash when footage surfaced from UFC 292 in August 2023, where he allegedly attempted to mislead Aljamain Sterling, trying to lure him into a reckless charge toward O’Malley.
Many rules have been a bone of contention in MMA circles as they can vary across promotions. For instance, the UFC doesn’t allow knees to grounded opponents or 12-6 elbows, unlike ONE Championship. On the flip side, moves like eye pokes, groin strikes, and headbutts are banned across all major promotions for obvious safety reasons.
Obeying the rules of the promotion and the commission you’re fighting under is very important for fighters. Jon Joneslost to Matt Hamill via DQ because he landed multiple 12-6 elbows and similarly, Petr Yan lost his UFC bantamweight championship for landing an illegal knee on Aljamain Sterling.
Sean O’Malley’s coach Tim Welch believes a couple of rules in MMA should change to stop fighters from exploiting them…
Sean O’Malley’s Coach Reveals How Aljamain Sterling Exploits A UFC Rule And Wishes To Get It Changed
Welch was asked about the MMA rules he would change on his official YouTube podcast, recently. Right away, he mentioned that fighters should be able to upkick opponents on top of them.
It is worth noting that upkicks from the ground to a standing opponent aren’t illegal in the UFC. In fact, Niko Price and Jon Fitch finished their opponents via upkicks in the promotion.
However, it is illegal to upkick an opponent while their knees are down. Back in May 2021, Randa Markos was disqualified for kicking Luana Pinheiro from the ground while the latter’s was sitting on the ground.
Charles Oliveira is notorious for landing upkicks too. He threw one at Islam Makhachev that could’ve knocked the Dagestani fighter out. Even against Tsarukyan, he landed an illegal upkick as the opponent’s knees were grounded following which the referee warned “Do Bronxs” and stopped the action temporarily.
Welch, though, believes that the upkicks to a grounded opponent should be legal in the UFC. Another tactic he dislikes is fighters staying in a safe front headlock position to rest up as they cannot be kneed during the time.
Welch called out Sterling for exploiting the grounded fighter rule sometimes and a great example of this is when “Funkmaster” took on Henry Cejudo. During multiple exchanges when Aljo would shoot for a takedown and fail, he would immediately bend his knees, leaving Cejudo with no viable moves.
“The upkicks. If some f*****g guy’s on top of you, on his knees, whatever, you should be able to upkick him to his f*****g lips. I think that front headlock one too. People shoot into a front headlock and they can hang out there without getting damage and almost rest there. I mean, Aljo does it sometimes but to be able to knee the top of their head, boom, boom, boom, so they can’t rest there. So if you shoot in a front headlock, you fail on a shot, you got to pull the half guard and get to your back or you got to make a move. Not just sit in that frontlock thinking I’m safe.”
Sean O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch, recently found himself in the crosshairs of fans’ ire after “Suga” came up short in his title defense against Merab Dvalishvili at Noche UFC 306.
Right from the outset, “Suga” found himself off balance, unable to establish any success as Dvalishvili smothered him with a torrent of takedowns at every turn. In the end, O’Malley succumbed to a unanimous decision defeat.
Although fight week remained relatively free of drama, controversy erupted almost immediately once the bout began. Dvalishvili accused O’Malley’s coach of resorting to familiar tactics, claiming he repeated the same strategy used to deceive Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292 in August 2023, attempting to bait him into a reckless charge.
“The Machine” swiftly brought the fight to a halt, furiously directing his attention toward O’Malley’s corner. His outburst forced referee Herb Dean to step in and deliver an admonition. Welch seemingly confessed on X to throwing out some questionable corner advice aimed at distracting Dvalishvili during the fight.
i said be patient merab, but congrats he fought a great fight
Fans Take Shots At Welch After O’Malley’s Defeat to Dvalishvili
Welch recently dropped a YouTube video where he broke down O’Malley’s title loss to Dvalishvili at Noche UFC 306. Once again, the MMA coach admitted to employing divisive corner tactics against the newly crowned bantamweight champion.
However, the fans flocked to the comments section, blasting Welch for resorting to underhanded strategies and holding him responsible for “Suga’s” defeat with a barrage of criticism.
One fan sarcastically clapped back at “Red Hawk”, using his own words from the fight, after the fourth round in the corner, to mock him.
“‘It’s okay, buddy, we’re almost done’.”
Another fan playfully suggested that Welch should pack O’Malley off to Dagestan for a crash course in wrestling.
“Tim send him to Dagestan and forget about him for 2 – 3 years.”
One fan remarked that Team O’Malley seemed to have no meaningful strategy to counter Dvalishvili.
“Looked like you guys had f**k all of a game plan.”
One user jokingly teased Welch, claiming that “The Machine” playfully kissing O’Malley’s back during their grappling exchange in the second round was the real moment that shattered O’Malley’s mental game.
“Those kisses were some significant strikes to the mental”
One fan criticized Welch, lamenting his choice to offer dubious guidance to Dvalishvili.
“Tries to cheat by yelling instructions to Merab, gets caught. ‘It’ll be over soon, Sean’.”
“Tim got called out red-handed trying to coach Merab like he did Aljo.”
Another user pointed fingers at “Red Hawk,” holding him responsible for O’Malley’s defeat, claiming he failed to adequately prepare his fighter for the challenge ahead.
“Now we know why Sean lost; his coach is more into his YouTube channel than training his champion MMA fighter”
“It’s called being classless and trying to cheat because ur guy can’t beat him without the bullsh*t.”
“Sean ain’t ever seeing that belt again”
“Merab put on an absolute clinic, made Sean look like he had never laced up a glove in his life.”
“Sean got his a** beat; all that trash-talking didn’t help.”
Merab Dvalishvili’s head coach, John Wood, recently revealed what he, too, yelled at Sean O’Malley’s corner, specifically his coach Tim Welch, during the heat of their clash at Noche UFC 306.
While Dvalishvili commanded the entire bout, effortlessly executing his game plan, the real stir came when the newly crowned champion suddenly interrupted the proceedings, fiercely gesturing towards O’Malley’s corner just moments into the fight. The sequence triggered swift intervention from referee Herb Dean.
Although Dvalishvili didn’t fall for the ruse, Wood claims he decided to play the same card against O’Malley himself…
Wood Takes A Swing At Welch, Tells Him To Leave Trash Talk To The Fighters
During a recent interview with MMAFightingonSBN, Wood weighed in on the fiasco between Dvalishvili and O’Malley’s corner at Noche UFC 306. The seasoned MMA coach expressed that, while he respects Welch as a person, his antics to distract opponents don’t align with the true spirit of the sport. Wood admitted that after seeing Welch’s attempts to mess with his fighter, he decided to turn the tables, using a similar tactic on “Suga”—but with his own twist.
“That’s not our job, Wood said. “I’m not trashing Tim for anything he does. I respect Tim, but it is a bullsh*t move. I was yelling at Tim across the cage several times when Sean would mess up, and I was making sure Sean heard me calling out everything that he wanted to throw. When he would do something stupid, I caught myself a couple of times in the fight, going, ‘Tim, did you teach him that? That was terrible’ across the cage.”
Wood didn’t hold back and fired yet another salvo at “Suga’s” coach, criticizing him for trying to rattle Dvalishvili during the media events. He advised Welch to leave the trash-talking to the fighters where it belongs.
“Fighters are there to trash talk, to build the fight, do their thing, whether they like each other, don’t like each other, but I don’t think it’s a place for coaches to get in. Tim was doing some stuff beforehand, like at the weigh-ins, he was talking sh*t to Merab on camera, saying things, and that’s fine. If you really feel like you need that mental edge, and especially if you could see how fragile Sean was and how quickly he broke, maybe they do. But like I said, I have nothing against Tim. The tactics, I wouldn’t do it; I don’t need the shine. I don’t need to be the guy in front of my fighter looking to get any kind of attention.”
Tim Welch, coach of recently dethroned UFC star Sean O’Malley, has hit back at claims his calls to opposition fighters from the corner is “unsportsmanlike.”
“Suga” was comfortably outpointed across five rounds by Merab Dvalishvili, who recorded an 11th straight triumph inside the Octagon to secure his long-awaited championship crowning on MMA’s biggest stage.
The headlining fight was an odd affair, and that was the case almost immediately. In the opening seconds, referee Herb Dean had to interfere as Dvalishvili began lambasting O’Malley’s corner.
The Georgian wasn’t about to let those antics go unanswered, and many in the community have since backed him up and criticized the actions of O’Malley’s trainer.
Coach Welch On Controversial Corner Strategy: ‘If There’s Any Way To Do A Little Bit Of Mind Games…’
During a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, Welch reflected on his man’s championship loss inside the Sphere and touched on the controversy surrounding his input in the fight.
Welch said he was surprised at Dvalishvili’s emotional outburst following one remark early on, which he went on to defend by insisting that he’ll always look for an edge that could aid his fighter inside the cage.
“He must have been anticipating that a little bit. But I really wasn’t going out of my way to yell,” Welch said. “I was surprised how much he freaked out. He let his emotions freakin’ get to him in there. But, it didn’t do anything, it didn’t matter one bit.
“It’s not like I’m being unsportsmanlike. I mean, it’s a little mind games. People sometimes forget that this is a fight. He’s fighting my buddy, a really close buddy who I’ve spent a lot of years growing up with. He’s fighting him, trying to beat him up,” Welch continued. “If there’s any way to do a little bit of mind games when it comes to war, I’m gonna do it. If I was your coach and I thought it might help you win, maybe just a little bit, then I’d probably do it also.”
Merab Dvalishvili captured the UFC bantamweight championship at Noche UFC 306, and while it was a dominant performance, it also came with one of the most bizarre openings to a fight in recent memory.
In the opening seconds, Dvalishvili could be seen mouthing off, but it wasn’t to opponent O’Malley. Rather, the Georgian challenger appeared to be in an argument with the champion’s corner, particularly his coach Tim Welch.
Referee Herb Dean brought a swift halt to the bout to warn Dvalishvili for talking to O’Malley’s corner. Dean also gave a warning to Welch for what commentators referred to as “excessive coaching.” Dean would warn O’Malley’s corner later on in the fight.
The bizarre nature of the pause left many fans confused and looking for clarification. This came especially when the UFC commentary team mentioned that O’Malley’s corner may have initiated the conversation with the title challenger.
On social media the following day, Welch provided clarification on what he was saying.
i said be patient merab, but congrats he fought a great fight
Tim Welch Reveals What He Told Merab Dvalishvili, Tips His Cap To The New Bantamweight Champion
This is not the first time O’Malley’s corner has been at the center of controversy for talking with a fighter.
As shown by the UFC documentary on Roku earlier this year, O’Malley’s corner appeared to communicate with Aljamain Sterling when O’Malley challenged him for the bantamweight title in the main event of UFC 292. “Sugar” to connect with Sterling not long after and finished the fight from there.
On this occasion, O’Malley struggled with the grappling expertise of Dvalishvili, Sterling’s friend and teammate, as he was taken down several times and nearly submitted in a unanimous decision.
O’Malley had successfully defended the title just once, defeating longtime rival Marlon “Chito” Vera at UFC 299.
Dvalishvili, meanwhile, has now won 11 straight fights inside the Octagon.
UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley and his long-time coach, Tim Welch, have come through their careers alongside one another.
Due to the fact that they have worked as a team for such a long time, they have a great working relationship that allows both of them to excel in their roles.
Welch has spent the past few months helping to prepare his fighter for UFC 306 this Saturday night, where “Suga” takes on Merab Dvalishvili.
On a recent podcast appearance, Welch spoke about a technique they use when helping the 135-pound champ to become familiar with how their opponents react to different scenarios.
Tim Welch Reveals Scouting Technique For Sean O’Malley’s Opponents
On The BrendenSchmitty Show, Welch explained how a fighter in their gym named TJ is crucial to helping break down O’Malley’s opponents.
He explained how TJ helps to produce detailed reports of what and how Dvalishvili acts in instances where he’s shooting for takedowns, responding to strikes from different stances and recovering from being hurt.
The added trick that helps to translate this information to O’Malley in his training is by breaking these reactions into short clips – and memes – so that they can be constantly replayed, meaning that “Suga” can pick them up even faster.
Taking these patterns and making them into a part of their training and drills allows O’Malley to know what his opponent will do before they even do it.
“What does he do after he gets rocked and hurt like when Marlon hurt him or Henry hurt him? What does he do? Where’s his head at? What does he do? And he breaks down all these things and turns them into little GIFs or like memes so he can watch that and then it can structure the pads and the knockout shots around that… and then just having Sean rep it and rep it and rep it and then try to hit it in sparring.”
Sean O’Malley will be defending the belt against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306 while Nurmagomedov watches on to see how it plays out.
@UNmgdv don’t lose round in the gym against even Welterweight don’t get taken down by anyone and he submit everyone whoever win next week Umar smash everybody Inshallah
The only thing that could potentially stop the undefeated contender from getting his shot is if there is the potential to put on a massive fight between UFC champions.
The current champion has spoken about wanting to face Nurmagomedov but a super fight against the winner of the featherweight title fight at UFC 308 could be a now-or-never opportunity for O’Malley and the promotion.
Tim Welch Says Super Fight Could Be Next For Sean O’Malley Under The Right Circumstances
In a recent interview with James Lynch for Bodog Canada, O’Malley’s head coach Tim Welch gave his thoughts on Nurmagomedov being the next contender.
Welch believes that taking on the cousin of the great Khabib Nurmagomedov will be their next challenge unless the main events of UFC 306 and UFC 308 end in emphatic fashion.
Welch referenced Dan Henderson’s iconic knockout of Michael Bisping at UFC 100 to make the case for this fight being put together if there is enough buzz.
“I think we’ll see how it goes and if Ilia, maybe if Max knocks out Ilia or Ilia knocks out Max cold and then ‘Suga’ just face plants Merab and drops a ‘Hendo’ bomb on him at the end and it’s just spectacular knock outs, I don’t think Dana and those guys would be opposed to make a super fight.”
Suffice to say, UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O’Malley and his team haven’t sought the aid of Henry Cejudo ahead of their upcoming showdown with Merab Dvalishvili…
O’Malley is set to make his second defense of the title later this month inside the unique surroundings of the Sphere in Las Vegas, where he’ll headline the second edition of Noche UFC six months on from his five-round beatdown of Marlon “Chito” Vera.
Next looking to unseat “Sugar” is Dvalishvili, an in-form Georgian who has won 10 straight to earn his long-awaited first opportunity at UFC gold.
“The Machine’s” path to the top has included memorable performances against the likes of Marlon Moraes and Petr Yan, but he perhaps saved his best for last when he squared off against a former simultaneous two-division champ at UFC 298 this past February. Dvalishvili collided with Cejudo on the main card in Anaheim, further stalling “Triple C’s” pursuit of regaining the belt with a comfortable victory on the scorecards.
While that left Cejudo with 15 minutes experience of what the Georgian contender brings to the Octagon, O’Malley’s team doesn’t believe he could offer them any advice of value in the lead-up to September 14.
O’Malley’s Coach Not Interested In Tips From Ex-Dvalishvili Opponent Cejudo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoNd4U5WNok
During a recent interview for Bodog Canada, coach Tim Welch looked ahead to his man’s second assignment of 2024, which is currently set to see O’Malley’s challenger make the walk as the favorite.
“I don’t know if that (talking to Cejudo) would help,” Welch said. “Everyone I’ve talked to that tried to talk to Henry, even coaches, they have a tough time working with Henry because he thinks he’s god’s gift to this green Earth, and you can’t teach him nothing, and his way is the way. But clearly it’s not, because Merab ragdolled him. So that’s definitely not the guy we want tips from.”
O’Malley will look to do a better job at stifling Dvalishvili’s offense than Cejudo did come fight night at Las Vegas’ Sphere in less than two weeks’ time.
Sean O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch, recently affirmed that despite their fallout, they still hold Conor McGregor in high regard.
For years, McGregor and O’Malley have shared a good rappot with one another. However, recent months have seen this camaraderie deteriorate as the two UFC stars find themselves entangled in a growing feud on social media.
It all began in May, when “The Notorious” erupted on social media, launching a tirade against boxer Ryan Garcia after he tested positive for the banned substance ostarine following his victory over Devin Haney.
In the midst of his outburst, McGregor took a swipe at O’Malley, lumping him together with Garcia due to the reigning UFC bantamweight champion’s own positive test for ostarine back in 2019.
There was a time when “Suga” revered and emulated McGregor, even seemingly adopting his flashy persona from the iconic Irishman. However, after “The Notorious” took jabs at him, that admiration seems to have faded. Last month, O’Malley unleashed a scathing critique of his former idol’s fighting skills in a series of blistering social media posts.
Conor isn’t in anyone GOAT talk. Entertainment yes but skills, no. Has a really good left hand. Shit Cardio. Weak Jits. Decently athletic. Mentally weak. Drug addict, needs rehab. 1-4 last 5 fights. Still fan tho. Hope toe heals up
However, Welch maintains that regardless of the current discord, he and O’Malley still deeply respect McGregor, recognizing the significant legacy he has left in the realm of MMA…
Welch Finds Friction With McGregor ‘A Little Weird’
During a recent interview with Submission Radio, Welch shared his perspective on the ongoing social media rift between O’Malley and McGregor. The MMA coach revealed that “Suga” used to be McGregor’s biggest admirer, and now witnessing their camaraderie diminish feels surreal to him.
“I mean, we still respect him. Literally, Sean was his number one fan,” Welch said. “Before going to the arena, we’d put on Conor highlights because he’s been in so many high-pressure moments. He’s good at staying calm, he’s good at staying present, and he’s a good finisher. So yeah, we have respect for him, but it’s definitely a little weird.”
Welch further commented on the hypothetical matchup with “The Notorious” that O’Malley had previously mentioned, stating that it would be a formidable challenge for his protégé.
“The only way it’d be possible is if they fought at 155 pounds, and I mean, that’s a scary fight. Conor is huge, he’s explosive, he’s quick, and he’s got good reaction time. But right now, Sean is in his prime. His confidence is so high, he switches stances, and his fight IQ is so high. So to say there’s no way we’d win that fight is stupid. There are definitely ways we could win it, but obviously, it’s a dangerous fight. He’s huge for Sean.”
Ireland’s Ian Garry is set to return when he takes on the division’s exciting newcomer in Michael “Venom” Page.
After beating Kevin Holland in his debut at UFC 299 in March, “MVP” will look to shoot up the rankings by taking out Garry in the #7-spot who has spent a lot longer in the promotion, building up his current undefeated winning streak.
Despite the sniper-like striking skills that both men bring to the table, there are some that believe that this fight may not make for the best stylistic clash despite how interesting a fight it is on paper.
Sean O’Malley & Tim Welch Aren’t Sure That The Styles Of Ian Garry And ‘MVP’ Will Gel At UFC 303
On the latest episode of the TimboSugaShow, UFC bantamweight champion and his coach Tim Welch discussed the announcement of this fight.
O’Malley stayed positive on the fight, saying that it should be interesting even if it isn’t a great watch on the night.
“Could be fun, could be fun”
Welch, however, was less confident as he spoke about how them both being counter strikers could make this one a difficult fight to get through.
“I feel like there’s a good chance it’s going to be boring. There’s going to be, I just feel like, watch Ian Garry versus Neil Magny, backing up, backing up. ‘Venom’ Page isn’t the type to stalk someone down and cut them off and put them against the fence and make it a fight.”
O’Malley rounded things out with joking about how both men could retreat until they both hit the opposite sides of the Octagon.
Despite this concern, he is still excited to watch the fight to see who gets the better of the striking exchanges when they do happen.
According to coach Tim Welch, former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo closed the door on a possible main event against a rising contender.
Cejudo hasn’t had the best time of things since returning from a short-lived retirement last May. After narrowly falling short of regaining the bantamweight crown against Aljamain Sterling, “Triple C” fell to 0-2 since his comeback at UFC 298 in Anaheim this past February, where he was beaten by Merab Dvalishvili.
While the latest setback sparked talk of a return to retirement for the veteran, he was quick to commit to the continuation of his fighting career. He’s since been assessing his options, calling to fight the likes of Petr Yan and Rob Font.
He’s also been dismissing some matchups. That was publicly evident in the case of Song Yadong, whose invitation to Cejudo for a showdown in China was shut down by the former champ-champ on social media.
And when it comes to being rejected by the 2008 Olympic gold medalist, “The Kung Fu Kid” is seemingly not alone…
O’Malley’s Coach Claims Cejudo Turned Down Phillips Headliner
A recent report from @MagicM_MMABets on social media claimed that Cejudo was being lined up to headline a UFC Fight Night opposite #11-ranked contender Kyler Phillips.
Phillips, a teammate of bantamweight kingpin Sean O’Malley’s, has won three straight since a controversial loss to Raulian Paiva in 2021, most recently getting the better of divisional veteran Pedro Munhoz at UFC 299 in Miami.
While “Matrix” is pursuing a spot inside the top 10 that a matchup with Cejudo would present an opportunity for, “Triple C” has been accused of rejecting the clash.
