O’Malley Says A Nurmagomedov Win Sets Up A McGregor Clash
Sean O’Malley felt that a victory over Umar Nurmagomedov could set up a Conor McGregor fight.
O’Malley and McGregor are not on good terms after the verbal shots they fired at each other over social media. McGregor called him a juicehead once boxer Ryan Garcia tested positive for Ostarine. Ryan received a one-year ban, as McGregor reminded the public of Sean’s failed test in 2019 for the same substance. O’Malley was banned for six months. Sean fired back by calling McGregor a drug addict.
Since then, O’Malley has been vocal about his chances of winning against McGregor. Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov secured a unanimous victory against Cory Sandhagen at UFC Abu Dhabi. Nurmagomedov took his record to 18-0 as the talk turned towards his next fight.
O’Malley Reacts
O’Malley will face Merab Dvalishvili in the second defense of his UFC Bantamweight World Title at UFC 306 on September 14. It is the first combat sports fight at The Sphere in Las Vegas, giving O’Malley a chance to shine on the biggest stage. If he comes through with a win, he plans on facing Umar to get the McGregor fight.
“Figgy called me out; Ilia and Max are gonna fight soon; undefeated Umar, 18-0, vs. undefeated Suga show, 19-0, beat a Dagestanian; I wouldn’t mind that. That’d be a real good way to get at Conor. Imagine how jealous he would be? I might just go whoop Umar just for that reason alone,” O’Malley said
Nevertheless, the chances of an O’Malley fight with McGregor are slim. Conor has two fights left on his UFC deal. He is expected to face Michael Chandler once he returns from his injury. He broke his toe, which meant he had to pull out of the UFC 303 fight with Chandler. The Irishman has recently said that he expects to fight Chandler in December.
O’Malley’s Chances
The Irishman has entertained fights with Nate Diaz and Dustin Poirier, the last man he faced in 2021 when he lost and broke his leg. The Notorious has also expressed his desire to fight in BKFC. That has left O’Malley further down the pecking order for the McGregor fight. The weight classes also do not help as O’Malley is a bantamweight, while McGregor was scheduled to face Chandler at 170. But O’Malley backed himself to get the better of the Irishman.
“You know what’s crazy? When I look at a professional athlete, a professional fighter who weighs 190, Conor probably weighs 190, right? 185? In the UFC, I look at that, I’m like, okay, I’m realistic. I weigh 155, 160. There’s weight classes for a reason, but I’m not gonna trip those guys.
“I will trip Conor because I do believe I could beat Conor in a fight. I’m not just saying that. I think, stylistically, I could beat Conor in a fight. Not an easy fight. But I wouldn’t call out somebody if I didn’t think I could beat him in a fight. I think I beat Conor in a fight. At this point right now. He’s thick, but he’s short,” O’Malley stated
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