Sean O’Malley is already sure he will have a shot at the bantamweight title.
Sean O’Malley might be the most popular man in the UFC bantamweight division. His personality and style have earned him a large fanbase. Although he is not yet ranked in the stacked division, he knows that he will fight for the title one day. If he has his way, that title fight will be against Petr Yan, the current interim champ.
“I’m gonna fight for the title, 100%,” O’Malley told BT Sports. “I’m gonna beat the guys I need to beat to fight for the title, and it’s gonna be me vs. Petr. I truly believe that will be the biggest fight in bantamweight history.”
O’Malley has been on a roll since coming to the UFC. His debut of the Dana White’s Contender Series immediately turned heads. He was awarded a contract and jumped into the difficult bantamweight division with both feet. He stacked up four wins in a row before suffering his first loss. Now with a two-fight win streak under him, O’Malley is looking to take on Raulian Paiva at UFC 269.
O’Malley may not be fighting ranked opponents yet, but he is certainly ready to call them out. He has been calling for a rematch with the one man to hand him a loss, Marlon Vera. He has also recently beefed with former champion Cody Garbrandt. Although Garbrandt is now at flyweight, O’Malley is still looking for that fight and the two were involved in a near altercation at the UFC 269 media day.
Talking will only get O’Malley so far in the UFC. He must show that he is ready for ranked opponents before looking for his ideal title fight against Yan. UFC president Dana White claims that O’Malley isn’t quite ready for the top fifteen just yet. Also, Yan will have to beat Aljamain Sterling to solidify his championship status. A lot must go right for O’Malley to get his wish, but down the road a bit it could be possible.
Do you think O’Malley will ever fight for the bantamweight title?
