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Ilia Topuria Scolds UFC Champ Sean O'Malley for Conor McGregor Comparison

O'Malley and Topuria get into it.

Mathew Riddle

Ilia Topuria Scolds UFC Champ Sean O'Malley for Conor McGregor Comparison
Ilia Topuria Scolds UFC Champ Sean O'Malley for Conor McGregor Comparison /

Ilia Topuria had some stern words for UFC bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley.

In a post on January 2, "Suga" remarked that Topuria is to him what Eddie Alvarez was to Conor McGregor. McGregor famously stepped up in weight to take Alvarez's lightweight title back in 2016.

Topuria will be fighting for the featherweight title against Alexander Volkanovski in the weight division above O'Malley, which suggests O'Malley may have his sights set on a double-championship if the Spaniard wins.

Topuria may not be willing to grant O'Malley the opportunity, however:

"I offered to fight you but the UFC told me that you are only good for fighting in teenager's places," Topuria responded. "After fighting [Volkanovski] I will fight Conor [McGregor]. And you will come as a fan boy. After seeing your PPV numbers the only thing I can offer you is that you fight in the preliminaries of my card."

Topuria refers to O'Malley's PPV numbers, which were recently met with scrutiny after his UFC 292 co-star Aljamain Sterling said they were "shockingly low."

Regardless of the fact, O'Malley has his hurdles to overcome before he can consider a move to featherweight. "Suga" is looking to avenge his first and only professional defeat at the hands of Marlon Vera in the main event of UFC 299 on March 9.

"Chito's" victory over O'Malley remains one of the biggest 'what ifs' in contemporary UFC. O'Malley injured his ankle part-way through round one which Vera took advantage of.  Vera finished the fight on the ground with some brutal elbow strikes and would leave O'Malley clutching his ankle in agony.

Does history repeat itself at UFC 299 or was it a fluke victory? Only time will tell whether O'Malley can claim to move to featherweight and back up his words.

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Mathew Riddle
MATHEW RIDDLE

Mathew is a UK-based combat sports journalist, graphic designer, and SEO expert with over five years of experience in digital marketing and a dedicated four-year track record in MMA journalism. He joined MMAKO in 2023. Mathew's insights have been featured on The Fight Fanatic, Heavy on UFC, Fansided, and Sportskeeda. Reach him at mr@thefightfanatic.com.

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