Sean O’Malley believes a title shot ought to be subsequent for him regardless of who holds the bantamweight title after UFC 311, however he undoubtedly has his choice of opponent.
Showing at a pre-fight press convention forward of RIZIN 49 this previous Tuesday, O’Malley laid out his plans for the New 12 months with hopes of regaining the title he misplaced at UFC 306. On that evening, O’Malley got here up brief and misplaced a unanimous resolution to Merab Dvalishvili, who’s now scheduled to defend that belt towards undefeated phenom Umar Nurmagomedov on Jan. 18.
“Ideally, Merab beats Umar and I get the rematch,” O’Malley mentioned about what he’d wish to see occur subsequent. “But when Umar wins, it’ll be Umar. That’s what I would like subsequent is a title battle.
“Hopefully mid-next 12 months. So the winner of that one. That battle’s arising very, very quickly.”
Following his loss to Dvalishvili in September, O’Malley revealed he fought with a torn labrum, which might require surgical procedure and hold him out of motion for a number of months. Whereas he’s hinted at potential return dates, the previous Contender Sequence signing seems able to name his shot for mid-2025, particularly if he will get his want for a title alternative.
Previous to reserving the battle towards Nurmagomedov in January, Dvalishvili really expressed curiosity in operating it again with O’Malley in a direct rematch, however the UFC shot down that concept. As an alternative, Nurmagomedov will get his alternative to turn out to be UFC champion for the primary time after amassing an ideal 6-0 document within the promotion, together with a current win over one-time interim title challenger Cory Sandhagen.
It’s secure to say O’Malley is protecting an in depth eye on Dvalishvili vs. Nurmagomedov to kick off 2025 with plans to battle the winner later within the 12 months.
