Tim Welch is still confident Sean O’Malley can beat UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili . Dvalishvili (19-4 MMA, 12-2 UFC) dethroned O’Malley to become champion at UFC 306 , and successfully defended his title in a unanimous decision win over Umar Nurmagomedov in Saturday’s UFC 311 co-main event in Inglewood, Calif. Both Welch and O’Malley (18-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) were in attendance for the fight, and Welch was impressed with Dvalishvili’s cardio, which helped him rally late to beat Nurmagomedov. “Umar came out there, stayed mostly southpaw, was throwing some sharp 1-2s in the beginning, and looking sharp,” Welch said on his YouTube channel . “And Merab, fourth, fifth round, just started taking over.