Former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley goes the additional mile to organize for the UFC 316 fundamental occasion.
Sean O’Malley will search for revenge as he prepares to rematch Merab Dvalishvili within the UFC 316 main event on June seventh in Newark. O’Malley returns to the Octagon after shedding to Dvalishvili at UFC 306 final September on the Sphere, bringing his bantamweight title reign to an abrupt finish.
Virtually instantly after UFC 306, O’Malley called for a rematch and claimed he was robbed on the judges’ scorecards after shedding by unanimous resolution. He’s since taken a protracted absence from competitors to recuperate from a current hip harm and make quite a few modifications to his way of life forward of his UFC 316 combating return.
However a number of the modifications O’Malley has made for the reason that first struggle with Dvalishvili transcend the ins and outs of blended martial arts.
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Sean O’Malley is giving up marijuana, masturbation, and gaming forward of UFC 316 title struggle
Throughout a current episode of the TimboSugarShow, O’Malley defined going MIA after the loss to Dvalishvili.
“I really feel like quite a lot of issues which have modified in my life are going to contribute to my efficiency,” O’Malley mentioned. “For instance, not being on social media. I made a decision in 2025 I’m carried out with social media. … I don’t get on social media, and I really feel like that’s modified my life. It’s solely been three months, however I actually really feel prefer it’s modified my life, and I really feel like that’s going to play a job in my efficiency. All these little issues –making choices like that, sacrifices. I don’t consider (social media) is a sacrifice, however giving up one thing, I really feel like that’s going to assist me carry out sooner or later.” (h/t MMA Junkie)
O’Malley then expanded on the sacrifices he’s making forward of the Dvalishvili rematch.
“I haven’t j’d the peen (masturbated) as soon as this 12 months – not as soon as in 2025,” O’Malley mentioned. “Haven’t j’d the peen, haven’t been on social. … I haven’t gamed, both. I give up gaming. I did quite a lot of gaming, two or three hours a day, and I have to fill it with one thing. We’ve been enjoying quite a lot of Texas Maintain ‘Em poker with the fellas. It’s been too enjoyable. It’s like gaming. You say, ‘Yet another hand.’
“I give up smoking weed, too. I simply stopped randomly. I simply didn’t like the best way it made me really feel. I’m not overeating. My sleep’s higher. … I’m not carried out smoking perpetually, however excellent now I don’t really feel the necessity to, and I simply don’t have any want to. I really feel prefer it’s been good.”
Earlier than the loss to Dvalishvili, O’Malley went practically unbeaten in his UFC tenure, with current wins over Aljamain Sterling and Marlon Vera. O’Malley stays one of many high pay-per-view stars within the UFC, however faces an uphill climb in his rematch in opposition to Dvalishvili.
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After Dvalishvili vs. O’Malley 2 was introduced for the UFC 316 headliner, followers had blended reactions to the rematch reserving. Some vocal followers consider O’Malley doesn’t deserve an immediate rematch after defending the belt one time throughout his title reign, an accolade Dvalishvili matched by defeating Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 311.
Sterling wasn’t granted an immediate rematch after a knockout defeat to O’Malley at UFC 292. After the title defeat, Sterling made the full-time transfer to featherweight, incomes a win over Calvin Kattar and falling to Movsar Evloev at UFC 310.
O’Malley has the possibility to not solely proper the wrongs of his first conflict with Dvalishvili, however to showcase the enhancements he’s made throughout his lengthy hiatus. Time will inform if O’Malley’s insistence on instantly operating it again with Dvalishvili will blossom into constructive outcomes or show to be a large mistake.
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