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Merab Dvalishvili is set to face Sean O'Malley in a rematch at UFC 316. Ahead of the fight, the UFC bantamweight champion has sparked reactions from fight fans with a sparring session that featured a lookalike of his upcoming opponent.
Known for his fun and enigmatic personality, Dvalishvili often playfully mocks his rivals. This time, he sparred with a young MMA fighter, Nasir Davis, who has a similar hairstyle to O'Malley and mimicked him during their session. The sparring video, posted by Brett Okamoto of ESPN, quickly gained widespread attention.
Check out Merab Dvalishvili's sparring footage (via @ChampRDS on X) below:
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Several fight fans and netizens went to the comments section of @ChampRDS' post to share their reactions, with one user writing:
"De’Sean O’Malley"
Others commented:
"He's pretty good at imitating his hands dropping constantly"
"Bro is really good and actually fighting just like O'Malley with maybe less elusiveness but still a very good sparring partner 👍🏻"
"Lol it’s like O’Malley with none of the actual consequences"
Check out more fan reactions below:
![Fans' reaction to Merab Dvalishvili's latest sparring footage. [Screenshots courtesy: @ChampRDS on X]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/05/f258c-17473659334968-1920.jpg)
Cory Sandhagen discusses the path to victory for Sean O'Malley against Merab Dvalishvili
In their last clash at UFC 306, Merab Dvalishvili defeated Sean O'Malley via unanimous decision to become the bantamweight champion.
While in a recent interview with Demetrious Johnson on the MightyCast, Cory Sandhagen proposed schemes on how O'Malley can defeat 'The Machine' in their upcoming grudge match by saying:
"I don't think the answer to beating Merab is a ton of footwork and keeping space. I think O'Malley's a lot longer, like Umar tried it, and O'Malley tried it the first time. Move your feet, keep a bunch of distance, and do it that way."
He added:
"That's a way to do it, but when a guy has a massive gas tank that's just like a superhero, I think that you just set your space and when Merab gets close to you, you hit that fool. And that sounds really simple and maybe not the most technical way, but I do think that's a way to combat the conditioning piece."
Check out Cory Sandhagen's comments below (53:07):
