Mario Bautista wants the UFC belt, even if it means he has to go through a friend and former teammate.
Bautista (17-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC), a top contender at 135 pounds, has been knocking on the door of a title shot, and he got one step closer to his ultimate goal last Saturday with his decision win over Cory Sandhagen at UFC 329. The victory at UFC 329 not only got Bautista close to the belt, but also close to a potential fight with Sean O’Malley – whom he trained with for many years at The MMA Lab in Arizona.
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Bautista is willing to fight O’Malley if that means a title opportunity.
“I haven’t talked to him, but I think we both have an understanding that if it’s for the No. 1 spot to be next for the title or for the title, what else could we possibly do?” Bautista told MMA Junkie Radio. “So, we just have to be ready for that scenario, I guess.”
O’Malley, who expressed his happiness for Bautista in his latest win, said the situation is “tricky” and “weird” but also showed openness to the idea of the two fighting each other.
Bautista gave some further context to their current level of relationship and their past.
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“We’re not super close or anything, but coming up, we were both amateurs at The Lab,” Bautista explained. “We were both young guys. There were three of us that were kind of stuck together – Me, Kyler (Phillips), and Sean. Just the young guys on the team that were getting beat up by the guys already in the UFC. So kind of growing up together like that, you get a close bond, and then you rise up the ranks with each other. Kyler, then Sean, and we’re following each other, and that’s when he made his move out of The Lab.
“I think Sean is a good friend. I think he’s a good guy, and I have nothing against him. It’s just, now that we’re not in the same gym, we don’t interact with each other as much, but I’ll see him from time to time, and it’s always good vibes, nothing weird.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Mario Bautista open to fighting friend for UFC title shot
