Sean O'Malley Eyes Ilia Topuria, Awaits Umar Nurmagomedov’s Stardom

Following in the footsteps of many new champions, Sean O'Malley is already eyeing two-division glory going into his first bantamweight title defense.

“Sugar” is scheduled to defend his strap against Marlon Vera (23-8) in the main event at UFC 299 on March 9. The UFC bantamweight champ has already called out newly crowned featherweight champ Ilia Topuria as a next potential opponent. Furthermore, O’Malley claims that the UFC brass and his team have also discussed the possibility of a clash against “El Matador” at The Sphere in Las Vegas where the promotion is planning a one-of-a-kind event in September.

“I’ve kind of been putting this out there, I’ve text Dana, text Hunter multiple times, said it on podcasts, said it in interviews, Me vs. Ilia in September in Vegas at the Sphere, Mexican Independence Day, I got the Mexican flag right here. Let’s make it happen. I think that would be the next fight if all goes to plan,” O’Malley told ESPN.

Topuria has already dismissed the idea of defending his belt against featherweight contenders who have lost to Alexander Volkanovski, whom the Spaniard dethroned via knockout at UFC 298 last month. While he initially didn’t show much interest in O’Malley’s callout, “El Matador” recently hinted at a potential matchup.

Me vs Suga. Who wants to see it ?

— Ilia Topuria (@Topuriailia) March 1, 2024

Meanwhile, O’Malley has been criticized for making his first defense against Vera in order to avenge a 2020 loss. Justifying his decision, the Phoenix, Arizona native reasons that fighting the bigger draw only makes sense in prizefighting.

“I like having options. At the end of the day, what’s the biggest fight? I am a prize fighter. I like making money. Why would I go fight, ‘Oh, this guy’s a f—-ing killer, but you’re gonna make less money.’ Or I go fight this guy who’s a f—-ing killer too and make way more money. So, I’m in the business of making money.”

Speaking of options, the name of surging contender Umar Nurmagomedov cannot be avoided for O’Malley. While he acknowledges Nurmagomedov as arguably the toughest matchup in the division, he wants to wait for the Dagestani standout to attain stardom.

“People think I’m avoiding tough fights. Umar is probably the toughest fight, and yeah, I’ve been bringing his name up – but it also has to make sense. Umar isn’t a star at all,” O’Malley said. “There’s potential to be a star/superstar. I believe I’m a superstar. I believe ‘Chito’ [Vera] is a star. I believe Umar is a potential superstar, literally because he has the last name Nurmagomedov. I’ve never watched the dude fight. I’ve watched some highlights. He’s very skilled. He trains at a good gym. His last name is Nurmagomedov. He’s Russian. He has potential because of that.

“I lied – I think I’ve watched him fight some dude where he kneed him in the lips, so I’ve watched him fight once. I feel like just with the name and the skill of the UFC being able to promote certain people, and he comes from that gym – Khabib [Nurmagomedov], I think they train together; he’ll be in his corner. O’Malley – Irish … it’s there. There’s something there. If he can become a star with that, that’s the fight I want, too. I don’t want just the easiest fight. I want the biggest fight, and if I have two options and one guy I think is a little bit better of a challenge, I’ll take that one.”