Merab Dvalishvili Explains Odd "Kisses" in Sean O'Malley Fight

"The Machine" made headlines with his in-cage antics at UFC 306.

Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Merab Dvalishvili has shed some light on a pair of bizarre situations that occurred during his UFC 306 title fight with Sean O’Malley.

Dvalishvili Explains "Kisses" During O'Malley Fight

“The Machine” finally got his long-awaited title shot when he and O’Malley headlined UFC 306 at Sphere last weekend, and the defending champion ended up having few answers for the Georgian’s wrestling in a fight that saw Dvalishvili claim the bantamweight belt via clear unanimous decision.

Top Contender Calls Out Sean O’Malley after Merab Dvalishvili Loss

Much of the talk after the event has centered around who Dvalishvili will fight next, but just days after winning the belt the 33-year-old also took to social media to explain why he appeared to pause the UFC 360 headliner immediately after it started due to activity in O’Malley’s corner.

Everyone is asking what happened at start of fight - I was trying to stay professional and focus on the fight only, not wanting to change the energy of the fight. I made no eye contact with O'Malleys team. BUT when the fight started I hear his team calling out to me - Merab..…

— Merab “The Machine” Dvalishvili (@MerabDvalishvil) September 16, 2024

Herb Dean quickly got Dvalishvili refocused on the matter at hand following the surprise pause, but the veteran referee was forced to get involved again later in the fight when “The Machine” was hunting for a submission late in the second round and appeared to start kissing his opponent’s back.

Wanted to explain also what happened during fight - when I got O'Malley in the choke... I heard 10 seconds and knew I didn't have enough time for a submission so ..... I decided to show him who the daddy was of this fight and gave his back a few kisses LOL. When the ref touched…

— Merab “The Machine” Dvalishvili (@MerabDvalishvil) September 16, 2024

Dvalishvili received a harsh warning from the referee for his actions, and O’Malley attempted to take advantage of the confusion by chasing the challenger down to land a punch just before the horn sounded to end the round.

Sean O’Malley Drops Timeline for UFC Return after Losing Title

Neither of the bizarre mid-fight occurrences ended up influencing the outcome of the matchup, and now with “Suga” apparently planning on taking some time off before his next outing fans are left waiting to see which top bantamweight will try to take Dvalishvili’s newly-acquired title first.

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