If you’re an avid UFC fan, then you must be surprised with very little by now. From staredowns to controversial and often obscene trash-talking from fighters, and even watching top-notch athletes get into a scuffle with fans, you have seen it all. However, does a kiss sound something that would match the vibe of the action inside the Octagon? While bizarre, it has happened inside mixed martial arts. Remember when Heath Herring KO’d Yoshihiro Nakao even before the match started? Nakao kissed Herring when they were facing off in the cage, leading to the American fighter doing what he did. Then there’s the awkward, yet hilarious moment from UFC 306 when Merab Dvalishvili kissing Sean O’Malley when he had him in the front head-lock against the cage.

Interestingly, they are not the only fighters who made headlines for a bizarre reason like this. There have been other incidents where fighters have attempted a kiss during a stare-down. MMA Welterweight stars Oualy Tandia and Christopher Drouillard Odena, ended up kissing each other during an intense staredown.

Recently, Sean O’Malley opened up about that infamous moment from UFC 306. While speaking to Jake Shields, he recalled his fight against the Georgian, who won the bantamweight belt at UFC 306. O’Malley said, “Herb got in my way, who knows what I would’ve done, throw a head kick or something”. To this, the former MMA star Shields replied, “ That legit that was great actually. Great fight IQ right there. You realize sh- still on.”

O’Malley explained his thought process and said, “ I  just knew there was still time, like I don’t really think like always he kissing my back I was like I just don’t hear the bell ringing.” Naturally, this little stunt definitely got him riled up and he wanted to to punch or throw a kick but referee Herb Dean stopped the scuffle because the round ended with the bell ringing.

“So I grab his neck and he has 10 seconds left,” Dvalishvili recalled at the UFC 306 post-fight press conference. “I know he can wait and he’s not going to sleep or tap from this and I wanted to make just a little fun of him and make him—I don’t hate the guy, just make fun of him, but at the same time, give him a little kiss to show that I’m dominant.”

However, his unique way of showing dominance was chastised by Herb Dean and the Georgian later apologized during the post-fight press conference. However, now that the Georgian is a champion and O’Malley has recovered from his hip surgery, what about the rematch?

Why Sean O’Malley versus Merab Dvalishvili 2.0 should happen?

‘The Machine’ secured a belt for himself and defended it successfully, and now he needs to defend his belt for a second time. So why is Sean O’Malley the perfect opponent for his title defense? Well, there are many reasons. One of them is because ‘Suga’ has immense star power, and as Aljamain Sterling put it, ‘Suga’ might be “the golden goose” for Dana White. O’Malley does have the power to attract a huge crowd. UFC did garner viral fame with their debut at The Sphere, but UFC 306 ended with a gate of $22 million—a record that exceeded Conor McGregor’s MSG performance. 

Even the sponsorship and merchandise sales broke records that had never been broken before. ‘Suga’ is a huge attraction because he is an entertaining fighter who sets up hurdles and pitfalls for his opponents and ultimately knocks them out. And apart from these, let’s not forget he is a former bantamweight champion.

On the other hand, Dvalishvili has also cemented his place by becoming a champion but also defeating top-notch fighters like Petr Yan, Sean O’Malley, and Umar Nurmagomedov. On top of that, if he can defend his title twice against the same opponent, he will truly cement himself as a legend. So if they did have a rematch, who do you think would win this time? Share your thoughts in the comments below.