Henry Cejudo shares bold prediction for Sean O’Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvilli at UFC 306: “He’s going to beat him”

By Chris Taylor - August 31, 2024

Henry Cejudo has shared a bold prediction for next month’s bantamweight title fight between Sean O’Malley and Merab Dvalishvilli at UFC 306.

Merab Dvalishvili and Henry Cejudo

O’Malley (18-1 MMA) and Dvalishvilli (17-4 MMA) are set to collide at The Sphere in Las Vegas on September 14. It is a highly anticipated contest and one that both ‘Suga’ and ‘The Machine’ believe they will earn a stoppage in.

Former division champion Henry Cejudo also believes that the ‘O’Malley vs. Dvalishvilli’ title fight will result in a finish. ‘Triple C’ recently spoke with MMAJunkie where he delivered the following prediction:

“This is my prediction,” Cejudo said. “Merab Dvalishvili is going to stop Sean O’Malley at the Sphere. He’s going to beat him. He’s going to either 50-45 him, maybe not 50-45 because he may lose the first two rounds or the first one at least. He’s going to beat him, but once Umar (Nurmagomedov) comes in, he’s just going to have his way with Merab. He really is. Umar is really good, really technical.”

Henry Cejudo (16-4 MMA) is currently awaiting his next UFC assignment. The former two-division champion has gone 0-2 since ending his retirement, dropping decisions to Aljamain Sterling and Merab Dvalishvilli during that stretch.

Given the current landscape at 135lbs, ‘Triple C’ is now contemplating a return to the promotion’s flyweight division.

“There could be a potential return at flyweight,” Cejudo said. “These are a lot of things I’m contemplating, potentially going back down. With the bantamweight division getting hot and with the newcomers coming in, there’s been a lot of thought of me going back down and getting a fight with Moreno and winning the belt once again. There’s a lot of cool stuff. These are kind of things I really want to think about and really decide once I get home and once, I’m injury-free. It’s just one little thing, but it’s a major thing. Because I’m going to be making a commitment to go out there and just do another run, do another run at these titles and dedicate myself like I was before.”

Henry Cejudo continued:

“I’m after gold now. I think if I do go down to 125 pounds and stay disciplined, I don’t think there’s anyone that can beat me. Plus, I think there’s a fun fight with Brandon Moreno. He wanted to fight me at 135 and then he backed out like a little b*tch. Now, I think if I go down and I beat him in Mexico, in his own country, I think that could be a big-ass payday too.”

Do you agree with Henry Cejudo that Merab Dvalishvilli will be the new UFC bantamweight champion come September 14?