By FCF Staff

Merab Dvalishvili needs to emerge from UFC 316 relatively unscathed, but the bantamweight champ’s hoping to fight two more times, before 2025 comes to an end.

Dvalishvili (19-4) is booked to rematch Sean O’Malley (18-2) at the June 7th event, who lost the belt via unanimous decision to the Georgian fighter in September. In January, Dvalishvili faced Umar Nurmagomedov, and defended the title with a decision victory.

Ahead of UFC 316, Dvalishvili spoke with ESPN. While discussing his hopes for the rest of the year, the ferocious grappler reported he hopes to fight two more times after the event (quotes via MMA Junkie.com).

“God willing, this will happen. I’m working hard for win and to defend my belt again. I don’t look at this as an easy fight, it’s going to be a challenge, but I want to be busy. I’m only going to take one month off, and I’ll be back to training camp. I want to be busy. I heard they’re going to have a fight in Guadalajara, Mexico, and I’d like to fight there and then fight in New York (in November) or in December. Let’s see. This one and two more this year. Let’s see.”

“I’m sure it’s going to be a big fight, we know he is the most popular in our weight class now,” Dvalishvili also noted in the interview. “But to be honest, for me, it’s about legacy and every fight is important. I’m excited for this rematch just for fighting, and I’m going to try to finish, I want to try striking, I want to try different things. I know Sean will change his plan. He’s also saying he’s going to be 70 percent better version, and I want to see this and test this. I’m more excited with this…”

O’Malley, meanwhile, has yet to compete since he fought Dvalishvili. The American underwent hip surgery not long after he fought Dvalishivli at UFC 306.

UFC 316 will take place at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.