UFC star Merab Dvalishvili almost starts a riot by stealing Sean O’Malley's jacket during staredown with Aljamain Sterling
Mia Phillips
Updated on April 07, 2026
UFC contender Merab Dvalishvili stole the show and Sean O’Malley's jacket in the aftermath of Aljamain Sterling’s latest title defence.
‘The Funk Master’ picked up a split decision win over former dual-weight champion Henry Cejudo at UFC 288 in New Jersey on Saturday night.
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Post-fight, Sean O’Malley got in the Octagon and shared an intense face-off with Sterling ahead of their fight which is expected to take place in August, according to UFC president Dana White.
‘Suga’ was seen sporting a red jacket, akin to what Michael Jackson wore in his iconic 'Thriller' video, as he entered the cage, but it came off midway through his staredown with Sterling.
Dvalishvili, who was there to support his teammate following his win over Cejudo, saw an opportunity and put O’Malley’s jacket on.
The Georgian then ran and jumped on top of the Octagon and celebrated like he had just won UFC gold before things almost got ugly.
Once O’Malley noticed his coat had been stolen, he ran over to confront Dvalishvili and was only stopped from getting into an angry confrontation with him by UFC security.
The scuffle interrupted Sterling’s interview with Joe Rogan, but fans inside the Prudential Center found it funny, as did many people who saw a video of the incident when it was shared on social media.
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After initially being angered by the bantamweight contender stealing his jacket, ‘Suga’ tried to play off his reaction by joking about the incident on Twitter.
“I gave my jacket to that guy I thought It was my coat boy,” O’Malley wrote in response to the UFC’s jokey post which showed Dvalishvili wearing his jacket during the face-off.
Sterling's stablemate is known for his wild antics. The 32-year-old famously injured himself by jumping headfirst into a frozen lake before returning with boxing gloves a few days later to fight the ice.
More recently, he travelled all the way from New York to Naples to support his countryman Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in his Champions League Quarter Final against Inter Milan.
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Unfortunately, it didn't pay off as Napoli's winger missed a penalty and his side was knocked out of Europe's most prestigious club tournament.
Dvalishvili recently cemented himself as the number one contender at bantamweight by comprehensively beating former champion Petr Yan over five rounds.
However, he refuses to compete for the title while his teammate holds it.
Right now, it’s unclear who, when, or where he’ll fight next.
How the UFC will deal with a rare instance of someone turning down a title shot after earning it with a nine-fight win streak remains to be seen.
