“He’s a clever dude,” Sean O’Malley called ‘smart’ for handpicking Ilia Topuria over Alexander Volkanovski for double champ aspirations

Alexander Volkanovski says Sean O'Malley is 'smart' in pursuing future fight against Ilia Topuria.

“He’s a clever dude,” Sean O’Malley called ‘smart’ for handpicking Ilia Topuria over Alexander Volkanovski for double champ aspirations

Alexander Volkanovski commends Sean O'Malley's two-division aspirations (Source: UFC.com/Twitter/IMAGO)

There is a running gag amongst netizens and meme makers that Alexander Volkanovski is always ready for everything. This stems from the fighter taking on the short-notice title bout at UFC 294 and giving it his best. He is the reigning king of the 145lbs weight class. However, the sentiment in the MMA community is that he might fall in his next square-off against Ilia Topuria at UFC 298 and Sean O’Malley has an eye on the division if it happens.

Volkanovski defends his gold against Topuria at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Volkanovski remains more motivated than ever from the training montage that recently gained much traction. If Volk loses and O’Malley wins, the bantamweight champion might challenge Topuria. Though the 135llber said it was because he liked Volkanovski, the latter considered it smart. On the ‘Believe You Me‘ podcast, here’s what he said: 

 He’s made pretty clear. If Topuria does get it done — is he gonna bet on it? Well, he’s not allowed, but would he? Probably not. He’s probably backing me. At the same time, he’s clever. He's a clever dude...He’s gonna have a safe net. ‘Look, this is a good option for me to go double champ.’
Alexander Volkanovksi via YT
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The featherweight champion lauded O’Malley for opting for a safety net for double-champ status, something Volk has done as well. He went after Islam Makhachev for the double-champ status but lost the second fight via knockout. Volkanovski also dismissed the notion that UFC 298 was too soon to return. Many fans felt Volk returned too soon after suffering a devastating knockout loss at UFC 294.

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Nevertheless, the featherweight champion remains confident in rebounding from the loss. Volkanovski has vowed to come for the ‘0’ in the rival’s statistics – a surging mainstay in the division. Meanwhile, O’Malley faces Marlon Vera next at UFC 299, hoping his path crosses with the featherweights.

Bantamweight Sean O’Malley guns for Ilia Topuria in the next fight

Alexander Volkanovski will make a title defense against Ilia Topuria soon at UFC 298. The Australian remains unchallenged in his division and aims to defeat the undefeated Ilia Topuria in February.

Sean O'Malley wants Ilia Topuria, should the latter win at UFC 298
Sean O’Malley wants Ilia Topuria, should the latter win at UFC 298 (Source: IMAGO/ESPN.com)

On the other hand, Topuria is brimming with confidence as he plans to overthrow Volkanovski. Concurrently, should the featherweight gold change guard, bantamweight Sean O’Malley aims at Topuria as well. Check what he spoke to Carlos Contreras Legaspi of ESPNDeportes below:

Topuria remains not too set on ‘Suga’ as a prospective rival yet. At the latest sitdown (h/t KOlmenero YouTube), he said he didn’t want the alleged superstar to grow at his expense. Moreover, Topuria did not consider O’Malley to be a superstar.

Unlike Topuria, though, Volkanovski lauded O’Malley’s plan gunning for a fighter with familiarity and/or feud. A showdown between Topuria and O’Malley will only happen if Topuria becomes the featherweight champion. In the scenario that Volk remains the champion, O’Malley will likely put his title aspiration on hold for the foreseeable future.

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