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Ilia Topuria is open to a future champion-vs-champion showdown with Sean O’Malley, but not just yet.
After O’Malley (15-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) defended his bantamweight title for the first time with a unanimous decision win over Marlon Vera in Saturday’s UFC 299 headliner at Kaseya Center in Miami, he called out featherweight titleholder Topuria, who captured the belt with a second-round knockout of Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 in February.
O’Malley (18-1 MMA, 10-1 UFC) said the matchup intrigues him, and certainly more so than the next top contender at 135 pounds, Merab Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili (17-4 MMA, 10-2 UFC) is riding a 10-fight winning streak and has been given previous assurances of a title shot next. Topuria could step in the way of his fellow Georgian by leaning into the callout from O’Malley, but he is going the other direction and said the time isn’t right (via X):
Suga, congrats.. Was a beautiful performance! There is a fight chasing you with Merab.. Get that done first .
Suga, congrats.. Was a beautiful performance! There is a fight chasing you with Merab.. Get that done first .
— Ilia Topuria (@Topuriailia) March 10, 2024
It’s unclear whom Topuria will fight for his first title defense at 145 pounds, but there’s a good chance it will take place in Spain. UFC CEO Dana White expressed interest in bringing the promotion to the country for the first time after Topuria’s win over Volkanovski.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 299.
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