Dvalishvili Finished the O’Malley Rematch
Merab Dvalishvili submitted Sean O’Malley at UFC 316 on June 7, 2025, retaining the bantamweight championship. The main event at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, ended at 4:42 of the third round through a choke UFC recorded as a ninja choke.
A second meeting produced a different conclusion
Dvalishvili had taken the title from O’Malley by unanimous decision in September 2024. The rematch again favored the Georgian champion, but this time he secured the victory before the scorecards were required.
After controlling the early rounds through pressure, striking and wrestling, Dvalishvili returned O’Malley to the canvas late in the third. He secured the neck and forced the former champion to submit.
The finish completed a second successful defense
Dvalishvili had already defended against Umar Nurmagomedov in January 2025. That five-round unanimous decision gave him a successful first defense before the second encounter with O’Malley.
The Newark result extended his winning streak to thirteen. It also added a submission to a championship record previously built through full-distance victories over O’Malley and Nurmagomedov.
An exceptionally active championship year continued
Dvalishvili returned in October 2025 and defeated Cory Sandhagen by unanimous decision for a third successful defense. He then faced Petr Yan in December while seeking another championship victory.
Yan won that meeting and ended the reign. The O’Malley rematch remained one of its defining performances: a finish against the opponent Dvalishvili had originally beaten to become champion.
Sources
- UFC: early control, final takedown and submission
- UFC: official finish time, date and venue
- UFC: first O’Malley meeting and Nurmagomedov defense
- UFC: Sandhagen defense and eventual December title loss
