Aljamain Sterling rips into Tim Welch amid Merab Dvalishvili row: "Weight classes or not, there’s a skill difference"
Aljamain Sterling and Merab Dvalishvili have built one of the strongest friendships in mixed martial arts. The two notably refused to fight one another when the former was the bantamweight champion and the latter was the division's top-ranked contender. 'The Machine' is set to receive the first title opportunity of his career when he faces Sean O'Malley at UFC 306.
The two camps had been involved in a back-and-forth leading up to the bout - centered around an argument involving 'Suga's coach Tim Welch. 'Funk Master' ripped into the mixed martial arts coach during a recent interview with MMA Fighting, stating:
"I just told him simply, yo, we don’t hate you or anything, but understand your place in the game. I’m not saying that to be disrespectful or this badass tough guy, but there are consequences for things that are being said... If you’re going to sit here and talk shit, when there’s a street beef or interaction that occurs, you’re now part of the mess. So you do your job, make sure these guys get to the fight, and don’t be the one instigating because you might be the one to get your face [punched]."
He addressed O'Malley's comments that weight classes are around for a reason, adding:
"Tim Welch wishes he could do half of what Merab and I have accomplished. Wishes. So weight classes or not, there’s a skill difference between the three of us, and I think he understands that. Whether it’s a street fight, cage fight, it doesn’t matter. I’m not even trying to take it there. Let’s just call it what it is. If you’re trying to sit there and say, 'I wish you would see what will happen'. If your coach is really about that life, have him get froggy and leap. It’s that simple."
Check out Aljamain Sterling's comments on Tim Welch below:
Sterling added that Dvalisvhili's camp is solely focused on making it to the fight.
Welch is a former welterweight fighter, who last competed in 2017, compiling a 14-6 record. His most notable moment came when appeared on season 22 of The Ultimate Fighter, suffering a second-round TKO loss to Jason Gonzalez in his first bout.
Merab Dvalishvili blames Marc Goddard for Aljamain Sterling's loss to Sean O'Malley
Aljamain Sterling suffered a second-round TKO loss to Sean O'Malley at UFC 292 last August, losing the bantamweight title.
Merab Dvalishvili recently blamed Marc Goddard for stopping the bout prematurely. Speaking to The Schmo, the No.1-ranked bantamweight stated:
"I'm going to beat Sean O'Malley and I'm going to show the MMA fans that he got lucky because he had referee Marc Goddard. Because Marc Goddard, we all know he likes to stop fights early."
Check out Merab Dvalishvili's full comments on Sean O'Malley's victory over Aljamain Sterling below:
Dvalishvili later doubled down on his claim that the bout was stopped prematurely. He claimed that Goddard told Sterling to move before ultimately calling the fight off when the former bantamweight champion followed his instructions.