“Let them fight again,” Sean O’Malley’s explosive take on UFC 294’s bizarre stoppage in Magomed Ankalaev vs Johnny Walker clash

Sean O'Malley' weighed in on Magomed Ankalaev vs. Johnny Walker no-contest, supporting a match continuation. The duo will likely rematch at a later date.

“Let them fight again,” Sean O’Malley’s explosive take on UFC 294’s bizarre stoppage in Magomed Ankalaev vs Johnny Walker clash

Sean O'Malley weighs in on Magomed Ankalaev vs Johnny Walker (Source: IMAGO)

Bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley and his coach, Tim Welch, recently delved into topics regarding MMA. One topic of discussion centered around Justin Gaethje posing a legitimate challenge to Islam Makhachev. Makhachev is the current reigning lightweight champion. Another contentious matter was the Magomed Ankalaev versus Johnny Walker no-contest.

During a segment on the champion’s YouTube channel, Welch redirected his attention to the second topic of the fight. This is what O’Malley said about the Ankalaev vs. Walker fight:

What if they made a mistake, they called it...And both fighters wanted to fight. And they are like - f**k it. Let's just let them fight again and everyone get out of the cage. That would be sick!
Sean O’Malley via YouTube
YouTube video

At UFC 294, Referee Dan Movahedi called off the bout at 3:13 of Round 1 upon the advice of the cage-side physician. The latter had interpreted Walker’s taunting response as a form of concussion disorientation. Walker pushed aside the referee and motioned for the fight to proceed, as did Magomed Ankalaev. Welch said the fault was the referee who could have just called it a disqualification.

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The fight was later ruled a no contest after Walker was deemed unable to continue due to an illegal knee from Ankalaev. Even a week later, both fighters still go back and forth with their banter about the match. Walker has even berated Ankalaev for the knee. Meanwhile, Ankalaev has blamed Walker for the out-of-place unwarranted stoppage.

Tim Welch and Sean O’Malley deliberate on Justin Gaethje vs. Islam Makhachev

Justin Gaethje thought he should be legitimately next in line to challenge Islam Makhachev. Lightweight champion Makhachev defeated Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 294. On his YouTube channel, Sean O’Malley and his coach, Tim Welch, ponder over the subject at length.

Justin Gaethje eyes lightweight title after Islam Makhachev's dominant performace at UFC 294.
Justin Gaethje eyes lightweight title after Islam Makhachev’s dominant performance at UFC 294.. (Source: IMDb/talkSPORT)

Welch speculated that UFC 254 loss to Makhachev’s close associate and mentor, Khabib Nurmagomedov was due to jet lag and fight scheduling affecting his performance. Gaethje reportedly traveled to train for Nurmagomedov 10 days before the fight. Both Welch and O’Malley agreed that it was hardcore. They also alluded to Gaethje’s southpaw over Dustin Poirier. Both of them agree that standing now, the fighter has a good chance of knocking Makhachev out.

Gaethje stated that he was willing to wait however long it took for his opportunity to challenge for the title. Gaethje, currently 25-4, won his most recent two fights. In July 2023, Gaethje claimed the BMF championship belt and is now setting his sights on Makhachev as his next opponent.

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