Sean O’Malley thinks the UFC should jump on the opportunity of having him rematch Petr Yan.
O’Malley (19-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC) re-emerged as a title contender after back-to-back wins over Song Yadong, and a knockout of Aiemann Zahabi at UFC Freedom 250.
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Yan (20-5 MMA, 12-4 UFC) put an end to Merab Dvalishvili’s dominant title reign at UFC 323, which saw “The Machine” score two decisive wins over O’Malley. Dvalishvili expects to get a trilogy bout with UFC bantamweight champion Yan after the pair split their first two appearances, but O’Malley thinks that would be a mistake by the UFC.
“I’ve been hearing Petr and Merab are going to fight for a long time – still nothing booked,” O’Malley said on the “Pound 4 Pound” podcast. “I don’t know if it’s Merab’s nose or Petr’s back. It sucks. One of those guys is obviously holding it up, and I don’t think it’s Merab. I think Merab would fight with his arm cut off. So I think Petr is probably just dealing with some injuries. He’s the champ, and if he’s going to come back (against) Merab – I fought Merab knowing I was getting surgery after with a torn labrum. Still, it was a close fight, and then I get the surgery and fight Merab again seven months later, just wanting to be back, just wanting the belt back.
“You can’t fight Merab on half-assed camps. You need a full, full camp. You need to be fully healthy to fight Merab, and Petr probably knows that. So he’s taking his time, as he should. He is the champ. You don’t want to go out there and lose the belt because you did something you shouldn’t do, so I get it. But also, if they want me vs. Petr next, I do think me vs. Petr Yan 2, rematch, is the biggest fight in bantamweight history. I think it’s the biggest one you could possibly make right now, and the UFC would be risking (it) making Merab vs. Petr.”
Dvalishvili (21-5 MMA, 14-3 UFC) recently told MMA Junkie that he plans on waiting for Yan as long as he needs to, and that the UFC told him there are no other fights but the trilogy.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Sean O’Malley: UFC risking my Petr Yan rematch with Merab Dvalishvili
