UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O'Malley paid close attention as a key matchup in his division went down in Abu Dhabi this past weekend.
In what was widely branded a title eliminator, top-five contender Cory Sandhagen and undefeated up-and-comer Umar Nurmagomedov collided in Saturday's UFC Fight Night main event.
While "The Sandman" was looking to record his fourth straight headline win en route to a second shot at gold, his Dagestani counterpart was hoping to secure his first championship opportunity with his record's 0 in tact.
It was ultimately the latter who succeeded, securing three convincing scorecards in his favor after five competitive rounds of action in the Middle East.
O'Malley Praises Nurmagomedov For Beating 'One Of The Pound-For-Pound Best' In Sandhagen
In a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, O'Malley reacted live to the five-round headliner between Sandhagen and Nurmagomedov.
Cory's a f*cking serial killer. ... Here we go," O'Malley said. "Great job by Cory defensively. ... I forget Umar is a striker. ... Another close round. I'm almost giving these to Umar just 'cause of the takedowns. It's hard when they're both so f*cking high level for someone to take control of the fight. ... Every time Cory comes forward, Umar's countering hard.
While summarizing the "close" fight, O'Malley praised both men for their efforts and branded their contest "as high level" as possible.
Alright, boys, Umar got the job done. Pretty close fight, in my opinion," O'Malley said. "Cory is, in my opinion, one of the pound-for-pound best guys in the world. For Umar to be ranked #10, a lot of guys didn't want to fight him...no one in the UFC wanted to fight this guy.
Incredible performance, by both guys really," O'Malley continued. "Cory did a really good job shutting down Umar's offensive takedowns and wrestling. Striking was pretty close; Umar looked like he landed harder shots. Overall, that's as high level of a fight as it gets.
Following the decision going in favor of Nurmagomedov, O'Malley reacted as the Dagestani called to fight the winner of his upcoming Sphere showdown with Merab Dvalishvili.
Me versus Umar next? ... Undefeated Umar, 18-0, versus undefeated 'Sugar Show,' 19-0. Beat a Dagestani, I wouldn't mind that. That would be a real good way to get at Conor (McGregor). Imagine how jealous he would be. I might go whoop Umar just for that reason alone.
Nurmagomedov wasn't the only victorious fighter with O'Malley's name on his lips post-fight in Abu Dhabi. Former two-time flyweight kingpin Deiveson Figueiredo also called for a shot at "Sugar" following his win over Marlon Vera.
The champ had an expected reaction to that callout...
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