Sean O’Malley acknowledges that Umar Nurmagomedov poses a significant challenge in the bantamweight division. Despite this, ‘Sugar’ is confident that he could defeat the undefeated Dagestani fighter if they were to face off in the Octagon.
After his victory over Cory Sandhagen in Abu Dhabi, the 18-0 Nurmagomedov expressed his feeling of “shame” for having O’Malley as the top fighter in the bantamweight division.
In response to Nurmagomedov’s comment on his TimboSugarShow podcast with coach Tim Welch, O’Malley praised Nurmagomedov but maintained his belief that he could knock out the unbeaten contender if they were to meet.
“I could knock out anyone in the division,” O’Malley stated. “Umar is a tough opponent. I thought Aljo [Sterling] was the toughest fight for me at the time, and I knocked him out. I believe Umar is one of the toughest challenges in the division.”
Sean O’Malley views a victory over Umar Nurmagomedov as a way to one-up Conor McGregor
Given his recent conflict with Conor McGregor, O’Malley also sees the opportunity to do something that ‘Mystic Mac’ never did — hand Nurmagomedov his first loss.
“I think it creates an interesting match-up, but O’Malley vs. Nurmagomedov could be a way for me to become, you know, bigger than Conor, as I have claimed I wanted to be,” O’Malley added. “If I achieve what he couldn’t — defeat a Nurmagomedov, end the undefeated streak — that would really bother him. He’s already upset with me, jealous, but this would really hurt him.”
McGregor’s rivalry with Umar Nurmagomedov’s cousin, Khabib Nurmagomedov, is one of the most intense in UFC history.
Although they only fought once in the Octagon, their feud remains strong with McGregor often taking shots at ‘The Eagle’ on social media and in interviews.
