Sean O’Malley reveals timeline for title fight with Merab Dvalishvili: ‘I’m hoping for The Sphere still’

UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley has revealed some potential dates for his upcoming title defense against Meran Dvalishvili.

After O’Malley defeated Marlon Vera to defend his title for the first time at UFC 299, he said Dvalishvili would be next. However, currently, no date for the title fight has been set. But, speaking to MMAFighting, Sean O’Malley revealed some potential dates for the title fight.

“It’s going to happen. It’s going to happen this year,” O’Malley told MMA Fighting. “I don’t have a date for your guys, unfortunately. UFC told me at the end of the month, they’ll have a date for me. I’m guessing, I’m hoping for the Sphere still. I’ve been pushing for that for a while but if not the Sphere, December in Vegas. Either one, I do think it will be in Vegas. It’s one of those two dates.”

The hope for O’Malley is to have it in September at The Sphere as he wants to fight sooner rather than later, but knows his fight will be in Vegas.

“Of course, I’d rather fight September [rather] than December,” O’Malley said. “But whatever UFC says, I’m ready to go.”

Sean O’Malley Says Merab Dvalishvili Is ‘Very Dangerous’

Sean O’Malley knows Merab Dvalishvili is a tough fight for him but he has confidence he will prove people wrong again.

O’Malley says he’s been training for Dvalishvili since his last fight which has made him confident going into the potential fight.

“We’ve been training specifically for Merab since the Chito fight,” O’Malley said. “That’s next and I’m training hard right now, prepared for whatever. We’re 14 weeks out from the Sphere so I’m not training, not full camp but if that’s the date, I’ll get right into camp. But I won’t know until the end of June.”

Ultimately, O’Malley is ready for the challenge as he says Dvalishvili will be one of the toughest opponents he’s fought. But, he has confident he will be able to find that KO shot.

“He’s up there. He’s definitely up there,” O’Malley said when ranking Dvalishvili among his opponents. “I think Aljo was the toughest to fight in the division for me. But 100 percent, Merab is up there. He’s very dangerous. He’s got a good gas tank. He’s hard to finish. That’s a very dangerous combination. We’ll have to wait and see.”

Sean O’Malley is currently 18-1 as a pro with one No Contest.