Sean O’Malley believes a title shot ought to be subsequent for him irrespective of who holds the bantamweight title after UFC 311, however he positively 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 night time, O’Malley got here up quick and misplaced a unanimous determination to Merab Dvalishvili, who’s now scheduled to defend that belt in opposition to undefeated phenom Umar Nurmagomedov on Jan. 18.
“Ideally, Merab beats Umar and I get the rematch,” O’Malley mentioned about what he’d prefer to see occur subsequent. “But when Umar wins, it’ll be Umar. That’s what I need subsequent is a title struggle.
“Hopefully mid-next 12 months. So the winner of that one. That struggle’s developing 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 just a few months. Whereas he’s hinted at potential return dates, the previous Contender Collection 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 struggle in opposition to Nurmagomedov in January, Dvalishvili truly expressed curiosity in working it again with O’Malley in an instantaneous rematch, however the UFC shot down that concept. As an alternative, Nurmagomedov will get his alternative to grow to be UFC champion for the primary time after amassing an ideal 6-0 report within the promotion, together with a latest win over one-time interim title challenger Cory Sandhagen.
It’s protected to say O’Malley is preserving a detailed eye on Dvalishvili vs. Nurmagomedov to kick off 2025 with plans to struggle the winner later within the 12 months.