It’s that time during UFC event week where fighters and analysts begin making their fight predictions.
UFC 316: Dvalishvili vs. O’Malley 2 takes place on Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The event is headlined by a bantamweight championship rematch between titleholder Merab Dvalishvili and former champion Sean O’Malley.
Former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker revealed his prediction for the UFC 316 main event and stuck with the same pick he made last time.
“Any fight Sean is in because he’s such a sharpshooter, his striking is clinical and so unorthodox. His angles. He doubles down on his instincts in the game, like in live. It’s so good to watch. I just really like watching him,” Whittaker said on the MMArcade Podcast.
“Merab is a story we all want to keep seeing go the distance. He’s the fairytale ending,” continued Whittaker. “I said this when I broke down their first fight, I want to see that cardio machine, that high-spirited Merab do the impossible, just constantly take down people, gas out people time and time again by doing what he does well which is mixing in his wrestling which opens up hands once his opponent gets tired. Then he just takes control of the fight and controls the fight, the distance that way.”
Related: Sean O’Malley prepared for a ’25-minute war’ with ‘sloppy’ Merab Dvalishvili
Dvalishvili and O’Malley spent 25 minutes inside the octagon together. They’ll both enter the rematch better prepared with a better idea of what to expect.
“When a sharpshooter like Sean gets fatigued, he loses that microsecond of timing, of speed, and it changes the entire fight. Now that Sean has had a feel of Merab, now that he’s been in there with him for five rounds, that he’s not injured perhaps, whether he was or was not, what are we going to see,” questioned Whittaker.
Robert Whittaker gives UFC 316 main event prediction
Whittaker considers the Dvalishvili and O’Malley rematch to be intriguing. Neither fighter is the same fighter they were at The Sphere last September. O’Malley did undergo surgery after their first meeting. Dvalishvili stayed active against high-level competition while O’Malley recovered.
“I’m going to back Merab again,” said Whittaker. “I love Sean. I love the way he works, but I backed Merab the first time. I want to see that story. like I mentioned before, that noble written insane. I want to see it. I want to see how far the horse can run.”
“I want to see an absolute grind fest for 25 minutes,” Whittaker said. “I spoke to Merab today and he seems to be locked in. He says he’s going to be looking for a finish in this one.
“He seemed locked in when I was speaking to him. I didn’t get that super high energy that we’re used to seeing with Merab. He seemed like a real focused Merab. He understands the threat that Sean’s going to bring to the table. I’m looking forward to this weekend.”
