A rising star who is set to compete at UFC 318 already has plans to call out a former champion in New Orleans.
Sean O’Malley is in a difficult position following his back-to-back losses to the current bantamweight champion, Merab Dvalishvili.
While his fellow 135-pounder Cory Sandhagen believes that O’Malley can make the necessary adjustments to continue competing at the top of the division, his next fight is massively important.
After working hard to bring the best version of himself to UFC 316, the lifestyle changes that O’Malley made were not enough for him to reclaim the belt.
As one of the biggest stars in the sport, ‘Suga’ is sure to find himself in the crosshairs of a lot of contenders, including one competitor who has quickly climbed the ranks.
Vinicius Oliveira believes a fight between him and Sean O’Malley could happen next after UFC 318
At UFC 318, Vinicius Oliveira will look to continue his remarkable start to life in the UFC by recording his fourth consecutive win inside the Octagon.
With the #15-ranking next to his name following his victory over Said Nurmagomedov earlier this year, he’ll face the #12-ranked Kyler Phillips at UFC 318.
In an interview with MMA Fighting, ‘Lok Dog’ revealed that he plans on calling out Sean O’Malley after getting his hand raised in New Orleans.
“There’s a good chance I fight Sean O’Malley. He’s great, a complete fighter. Not that complete, but good and versatile and he has a big name in the UFC even though he’s not in a good moment in the UFC. He’s a phenom. If he buys the idea, this fight happens. It all depends on the trash talk, on how I promote this fight.”
Despite stating that he believes there’s a good chance that the fight could happen, Oliveira also noted that if he was in O’Malley’s position, he wouldn’t take it.
The Brazilian admitted that there would be a lot on the line for ‘Suga’ when facing a rising contender who doesn’t currently have the name value of one of the top contenders.
“But, if I were him, I wouldn’t take this fight. What he doesn’t know is that maybe the guys from down the rankings are hungrier to move up. That hunger makes us dangerous… I’d do it, but maybe if I were him, I would not because he has more to lose than win.”
Vinicius Oliveira has put aside his pursuit of the fighter he most wants to face
In the same interview, Vinicius Oliveira said that he’s given up on his pursuit of his main target, at least for the time being.
Oliveira called out Umar Nurmagomedov earlier this year but with the former title challenger being inactive since January, his request didn’t lead anywhere.
“The guy I wanna fight is scared of me, he won’t fight me, and that’s Umar Nurmagomedov. Okay, I’ve ruled that out already.”
While Oliveira’s plan to call out Sean O’Malley is also very ambitious, Petr Yan will face the #13-ranked Marcus McGhee next week so the Brazilian isn’t completely out of his depth.