From diving head-first into frozen lakes and climbing trees to auditioning for music videos, Merab Dvalishvili has made a name for himself as one of MMA’s most unpredictable and entertaining characters, both inside and outside the cage. Known for his quirky, fearless antics, ‘The Machine’ continues to amuse fans beyond just his fighting skills. As he gears up to defend his title at UFC 316 against Sean O’Malley at Newark’s Prudential Center this weekend, controversy has followed him again. This time, Daniel Cormier confronted him over allegedly knocking out one of his students. Let’s dive into the chaos.

While having a candid conversation with the bantamweight champion, Daniel Cormier playfully reminded Merab Dvalishvili about the time he knocked out one of Cormier’s pupils during a sparring session at his gym. “I had a kid go into your gym, and you knocked him down bro. Why? You punched the guy’s stomach.”

The Machine appeared clueless, as ‘DC’ further questioned him, “I watched a video—one of my guys, one of my wrestling guys, goes into your gym nice enough to give you rounds, and you punched him. Why did you do this? Why’d you do this to him?”

When he finally recalled the incident, he responded, “It was fine… like, my body shot got improved, and I was just testing it.” Daniel Cormier was stunned as he stated that since he had knocked out one of his pupils, Merab would now have to answer to him. In a rather playful manner, ‘The Machine’ simply responded, “No, no, no.” 

Merab Dvalishvili regularly spars with a number of teammates as part of his intense training routine, which often leaves him banged up. Recently, ‘The Machine’ nearly broke his toe during a sparring session with one of his teammates. He uploaded the video to his Instagram handle, which quickly caught the attention of fans who grew concerned about his availability for the UFC 316 headliner.

However, Dvalishvili soon posted another video, reassuring everyone that he is not injured and is fully prepared to take on Sean O’Malley. With just days remaining until the ultimate clash, ‘The Machine’ is aiming to extend his 12-fight winning streak to 13. Standing in his way, however, is a dangerous striker who plans to cut him open in the early rounds.

Merab Dvalishvili faces a grim reminder from Sean O’Malley’s coach for UFC 316

The last time Merab Dvalishvili and Sean O’Malley faced each other was at UFC 306. Back then, ‘Suga’ was confident of victory, constantly taking shots at the Georgian fighter in the lead-up to the bout. However, what unfolded inside the Octagon changed the course of the bantamweight division. ‘The Machine’ dominated O’Malley in a way that shattered his ‘Suga’ persona for good. Now, as things come full circle, O’Malley appears more focused than ever—and this time, he’s planning to hurt Dvalishvili.

While having a conversation with his audience on his YouTube handle, O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch, highlighted that they are planning to make sure they hurt Dvalishvili in the initial rounds.“It’s gonna be a war. We’re planning for a 25-minute battle, but I see Sean cutting his face. I see him cutting his face open. Merab shooting at the wrong time. Merab maybe getting wobbled by a shot, taking a shot at the wrong time, getting knee’d up the middle to the lips, maybe to the beak,” said Welch.

He further added, “[O’Malley] knees his beak, hurts Merab. Boom, boom, boom… boom. And he starts just to ground and pound. TKO, Sugar Show gets it done. He’s a champion again. We’ve got our hands full. We’re prepared.” Tim Welch has stated that ‘Suga’ is locked on his target this time, but how much of it is sheer confidence, and how much of it is bravado? We will find out inside the Octagon.

Interestingly, throughout his career, Merab Dvalishvili has never been knocked out by anyone. Can Sean O’Malley be the one to change that this weekend? Share your thoughts on this epic showdown in the comments below!