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Former UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O'Malley Outlines Plan to Reclaim Title

Ex-UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O'Malley remains optimistic despite losing his title to Merab Dvalishvili last September.

Zain Bando

(via Zuffa LLC)

Former UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O'Malley took some time to reflect on his loss to Merab Dvalishvili last September and where he sees his career headed this year.

O'Malley Targets Winner Of Upcoming Bantamweight Title Fight

O'Malley told RIZIN TV he intends to attempt to regain his bantamweight belt following the outcome of Dvalishvili vs. Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 311 in Los Angeles, the promotion's first Pay-Per-View of the year.

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"Ideally, Merab beats Umar and I get the rematch," O'Malley said. "But if Umar wins, it'll be Umar. That's what I want next is a title fight."

O'Malley became the bantamweight champion in Aug. 2023 with a TKO victory against then-champion Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292, ushering in a new era of fans. However, his title run was short-lived, as his lone defense came against Marlon Vera at UFC 299 to avenge what was then his loss.

Former UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O'Malley Outlines Plan to Reclaim Title
Dvalishvili took O'Malley's title at UFC 306. / (Zuffa LLC)

Meanwhile, Dvalishvili has won 11 of 13 UFC fights and has not lost since an April 2018 submission against Ricky Simón. During his current winning streak, he has defeated some of the best fighters the 135-pound division has seen in quite some time, including former flyweight title challenger John Dodson, ex-champions Petr Yan, Henry Cejudo, and José Aldo.

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The Nurmagomedov name is proudly represented in MMA, dating back to Khabib's lightweight title run in the late 2010s. Since then, Umar Nurmagomedov has taken bantamweight by storm, rattling off 18 consecutive wins, having never tasted defeat in MMA.

Former UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O'Malley Outlines Plan to Reclaim Title
Mar 5, 2022; Las Vegas, Nevada, UNITED STATES; Brian Kelleher (red gloves) fights Umar Nurmagomedov (blue gloves) during UFC 272 at T-Mobile Arena. / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Six of those victories have come in the UFC, with his latest a unanimous decision against Cory Sandhagen last August - arguably his best performance to date.

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For now, it remains to be seen whether Nurmagomedov can continue to carry forward the success of his last name. Regardless, for O'Malley's return, he'll have a tough ask if he wants to regain his title.

Only time will tell, as O'Malley is targeting a mid-year return.

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Zain Bando
ZAIN BANDO

Zain Bando is a writer for MMA Knockout, part of the Sports Illustrated/Minute Media umbrella. He has covered combat sports since 2019 for notable outlets BJPenn.com and FanSided MMA. He also co-hosts a podcast called "The MMA Outsiders," part of the Empty The Bench Podcast Network, which airs Tuesday nights at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT. A Chicago suburban native, Bando has been enthralled with MMA since 2006 and has been fortunate to attend some of the most high-profile events in the sport's history, both as a fan and media member, including UFC 264, Bellator 297 and Kayla Harrison's PFL MMA debut. He is excited to take the next step in his combat sports writing journey and looks forward to continuing his following of the fight game for years to come. Bando can be reached via email at zainbando99@gmail.com or by social media @zainbando99

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