UFC Legend Shares Interesting Theory On Sean O'Malley's Next Opponent

Could this UFC legend be onto something?

One former UFC veteran has a theory on who Sean O'Malley will take on in his first bantamweight title defense.

Back in August, O'Malley challenged Aljamain Sterling for the UFC Bantamweight Championship. Sterling was hoping to extend his own record for the most successful consecutive UFC bantamweight title defenses. O'Malley pulled off the upset, finishing Sterling in the second round via TKO to capture the 135-pound gold.

(via Zuffa LLC)

READ MORE: BRENDAN SCHAUB PRAISES "BRILLIANT" SEAN STRICKLAND FOLLOWING UFC 293 WIN OVER ISRAEL ADESANYA

Sterling was recently a guest during UFC 293 in Sydney, Australia. When the camera was focused on him, "Funk Master" pulled out his phone with a message for O'Malley, asking for a rematch.

In a new video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Chael Sonnen felt Sterling's appearance was rather interesting and he's questioning what the purpose of being flown out to Sydney was for since he didn't have a Q&A session.

"By the way, who brought Sterling to Australia? Why was he there? They brought him out, meaning the UFC, they brought him out for a reason," Sonnen said. "Now, they had done a Q&A, which is a very popular thing that the UFC does. It gets great numbers, it's real interactive, the crowds love it, but they did that with Justin Gaethje. They didn't do that with Sterling. What did Sterling do? What was his participation?

"While Aljo is out there in Australia, while he's holding this thing in the cool shirt looking great, while he's doing that, simultaneously, guess who was not there? Guess who was not brought and who did not go to social media at the same exact time? Merab, Merab was surprisingly quiet and he was not invited and he was not in attendance. It would seem that between the two, you have a number one contender who's won nine in a row, or do you have a number one contender because he set the record and then just lost the belt?"

Ultimately, Sonnen does not believe that Sterling will be meeting O'Malley next barring an injury or unforeseen circumstance, however.

"Sugar Sean does have an opponent and he does have a fight," Sonnen said. "That I can tell you. I think the opponent to fight is gonna be against Chito Vera."

If you use any quotes from this article, please leave an H/T to MMAKnockout.com for the transcription.

READ MORE: CHAEL SONNEN EXPLAINS WHY DRICUS DU PLESSIS WON'T GET TITLE SHOT AFTER UFC 293

Stick with MMA Knockout for more daily coverage of the UFC and MMA.

Follow MMA Knockout on Twitter and Facebook.