Umar Nurmagomedov believes he will not be matched against Sean O’Malley. Nurmagomedov and O’Malley are currently on the cusp of title contention, with a win for both likely to seal a title shot. However, former bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili is guaranteed a chance to regain his title against Petr Yan.
Nurmagomedov (20-1) is willing to fight anyone in the meantime, preferably O’Malley (19-3) in Abu Dhabi this summer. However, Nurmagomedov doubts the match will happen as neither O’Malley nor the UFC want it. Nurmagomedov believes that if Yan defends his title, O’Malley will get the next title shot, given his previous split-decision victory over the champion. However, Nurmagomedov believes he will secure the next title shot if Dvalishvili regains the title against Yan. While Nurmagomedov has lost once to Dvalishvili, O’Malley has lost two title fights to the Georgian, including a stoppage.
Ready for everyone
“I am ready to fight anywhere and with anyone,” Nurmagomedov told Gorilla Fighting. “If there is a rematch between Merab and Petr, I would like to fight Sean, the top contender. I find it hard to believe that Sean will agree to this fight and that the UFC will make it happen. There will be an event this summer in Abu Dhabi. I could fight a five-round fight, headlining the event… If Petr wins the rematch, his next fight will be against Sean, but if Merab wins the rematch, I will be next. Sean has fought him twice.”Nurmagomedov defeated Deiveson Figueiredo via unanimous decision at UFC 324 last month, notching his second consecutive win since his failed title bid against Dvalishvili last year. Meanwhile, “Suga” defeated Yadong Song on the same card via unanimous decision to bounce back from consecutive title losses to Dvalishvili.
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