Merab Dvalishvili rubbishes fear of deportation if he decides to "slap Sean O'Malley's coach" at Noche UFC: "Now I'm a citizen"

Merab Dvalishvili intends to confront Sean O'Malley's coach Tim Welch for the comments he made during the build-up of their clash at Noche UFC 306. Welch has actively been involved in mocking Dvalishvili, and the 33-year-old has warned the MMA coach that he would "slap" him when they cross paths.

Dvalishvili's stance is rooted in Welch's involvement in shouting instructions at Aljamain Sterling from the side of the cage. Moreover, Dvalishvili believes that Welch has been disrespectful towards him and has been making fun of his height and nose. According to him, such behavior would lead to disqualification in sports like basketball and football.

'The Machine' reflected on his journey to the title shot at the pre-fight media scrum and rubbished fear of deportation for potentially slapping O'Malley's coach. He said:

"After 2020, a lot of things change. I started getting more fights in the UFC and I started making good money. I became a full-time fighter, moved to [Las] Vegas, and everything came. I fixed my immigration papers and I can [fly] to my country or whatever country I want. Now I’m a citizen, and now I can slap Sean O’Malley’s coach and no one will deport me from the U.S.” [H/t: bjpenn.com]

Catch Merab Dvalishvili's comments below (19:45):

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Merab Dvalishvili labels Sean O'Malley's coach "not a real man" and talks about street fight with him

Merab Dvalishvili will take on UFC bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley at Noche UFC 306 on Sept.14. The pair will headline the pay-per-view showcase at the iconic Sphere in Las Vegas.

In the buildup to the fight, the pair have traded verbal barbs and posted mocking parody videos aimed at each other. While the back-and-forth was charged by a spirit of competitiveness, O'Malley's coach Tim Welch's comments have irked Dvalishvili.

The bantamweight title challenger launched a scathing attack on Welch in an interview with MMA Fighting, stating:

“He’s not a real coach. He’s not a real man. That’s what I’m talking about. He’s not a fighter. I’m not going to go in the cage with him. He’s never going to be in the UFC or in my weight class especially." [H/t:MMA Fighting]

He added:

"I’m not going to do jiu-jitsu rounds with him. I’m talking about a street fight. That’s all I was trying [to say], but then Sean O’Malley was acting stupid [saying] there’s weight classes. This guy is so stupid. What are you talking about? Where did you grow up? Who raised you? Who are you? What the f*ck are you talking about?"