{"id":468875,"date":"2026-02-09T17:19:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T17:19:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/468875\/"},"modified":"2026-02-09T17:19:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T17:19:08","slug":"umar-nurmagomedov-doubts-sean-omalley-will-agree-to-fight-him","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/468875\/","title":{"rendered":"Umar Nurmagomedov doubts Sean O’Malley will agree to fight him"},"content":{"rendered":"

Umar Nurmagomedov<\/a> thinks Sean O’Malley<\/a> is the fight to make, but doesn’t see it happening.<\/p>\n

Nurmagomedov (20-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) has won two-straight fights against Mario Bautista and Deiveson Figueiredo ever since losing to Merab Dvalishvili<\/a> in their title bout at UFC 311.<\/p>\n

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On the same night that Nurmagomedov defeated Figueiredo at UFC 324<\/a>, O’Malley (19-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC) returned to the win column by edging out Song Yadong<\/a>. Nurmagomedov sees it as a two-man race for the next title shot \u2013 unless Dvalishvili gets his trilogy bout with bantamweight champion Petr Yan<\/a>.<\/p>\n

“I’m ready to fight anywhere with anyone, anytime,” Nurmagomedov told Gorilla Fighting<\/a> in a translated interview. “If there is a rematch between Yan and Merab, I would like to fight against O’Malley, the contender (bout). I find it hard to believe that Sean will agree to this fight and that the UFC will make it happen.<\/p>\n

“There will be an event in Abu Dhabi in the summer. I could fight a five-round bout, headline the event. The situation in the UFC is as follows: If Petr wins the rematch, his next fight will be against O’Malley, then I’ll be next. But if Merab wins the rematch, I’ll be next. Sean fought him twice. In the last fight, Merab choked him.”<\/p>\n

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Yan (20-5 MMA, 12-4 UFC) shook up the division after dethroning Dvalishvili at UFC 323<\/a> this past December. Nurmagomedov has never fought Yan, and O’Malley holds a win over the current champion at UFC 280.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Umar Nurmagomedov doubts UFC matches him up against Sean O’Malley<\/a><\/p>\n