Sean O’Malley appears to be ready for an opponent come Saturday at UFC 299.
As we edge closer to the UFC 299 Miami card, fans have now learned Merab Dvalishvili is the back up fighter for the main event should problems arise. Coming in hot after his last dominant performance over former champ Henry Cejudo, Merab is now the No. 1 contender for the strap.
O’Malley states that he is ready for an opponent come Saturday night. Despite Merab’s style being wrestling dominant, and Chito being a technical striker, the champ seems to be ready for anything. He stated the following:
Sean O’Malley at UFC 299 Press Conference
“One hundred percent, I will fight him on Saturday”. In response to being asked what he thought of Merab being the backup fighter. “Yeah, 100 percent”.
Merab could have fought for the title before beating Cejudo. However, the UFC decided to prioritise the fight between O’Malley and Chito. Bad blood and history between the two sells the fight itself. O’Malley went on to give credit to Merab after his last outing.
“He had a great performance too”. “Henry didn’t look great by any mean, but Merab did what he does. He almost gets knocked out then wins. It was impressive. Very well could be next. I like having my options open. He could be next.
Press Conference Continued
O’Malley went on to discuss the current landscape of the division, and how he sees himself against the rest. “I thought Aljamain Sterling was the hardest matchup for me in the division and I put his lights out in two rounds,” O’Malley said. “I think Merab’s definitely up there. Everybody in the top 10, no one is an easy fight. Chito vera is not an easy fight. Merab’s a tough fight. They’re all tough fights.
O’Malley seems comfortable but not complacent in his position. He is ready for any opponent but is not showing any signs of underestimating them. He said “Anything can happen, I’m not looking past Chito. I’d love to never lose. I’m just going with the flow”.
Strong words from the champ Sean O’Malley, set to defend his title on Saturday. Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
