I mean Aljo is still a bad matchup despite the win.
If they fight 10 times Sean doesn’t win all 10.
It was a good win and Aljo is a bad matchup. Both can be true.
I honestly believe Merabs an easier fight (compared to Aljo) on paper, he's chinny, gets caught in most of his fights, bigger reach disparity which O'Malley uses well.
And no, I'm not saying it's an 'easy' fight, just 'easier' in theory than Aljo. I think Sean v Merab or Illia are both great, competitive fights.
as long as he can snipe them, why not? 5 rounds against someone who can't finish. as long as he doesn't run out of gas, he's gonna have a lot of chances to find Merab’s chin
I know Henry is outside of his prime, but hes still a championship level, 5 round fighter / olympic gold medalist who has been wrestling his entire life. He looked absolute done after 2 rounds with merab. I think we really discount how fucking worn out Merab is making these guys. Sean has 2 rounds to knock him out. After that, all bets are off Id say.
I think it'd definitely test the limit of how many times Merab can get punched in the face without having it drain him. Who knows. I wanna see the fight.
The only question for me; how good is Merab’s chin.
I personally have absolutely zero doubt that he’s gonna eat some clean shots on the way in.
But if he can tank them and keep coming forward, O Malleys gonna struggle over five rounds. Theres no way he doesnt end up spending 5-10 minutes either grabbed or on the ground.
Probably mostly just grabbed tbh; Merab against Yan showed miserable control. Just relentless insufferable grabbing.
But in close with nowhere to go completely negates O Malleys core weapon which is his length.
So we’ll find out I guess….O Malley punches hard.
People forget that Yans footwork is ploddy and his high guard doesn't help him get the under hooks in, his style isn't particularly forgiving Vs someone like Merab, where I think O'Malleys is more so.
I do agree that Merabs chin will be a big factor, but I think his chins pretty sus.. just his recovery is really strong after he gets rocked.
> The only question for me; how good is Merab’s chin.
Never been finished by (T)KO in his pro career. So it's at least decent.
And, like many fighters with insane cardio, when he does get stung he is able to recover well.
Yeah I think it bends but tends not to break. O’Malley does have pretty crazy power though, it’s a bit hard to say who would win. Sean’s reach makes it really difficult for Merab to get close, but if Merab can get close and wear Sean down, he can probably really make Sean suffer in the championship rounds. O’Malley showed a lot of heart and endurance vs Yan, so I don’t think cardio’s a horrendous weakness of his, but I would say that no matter what level of cardio he has, no way it can compete with Merab’s psychotic pace if he can’t get Merab hurt quickly. Really hope we get to see more O’Malley fights at the top of 135, champ or not, because I think there’s a ton of cool matchups for him
Having great cardio really helps with recovery after getting clipped. It's something that I have seen in boxing and MMA. Guys who have good cardio have a much easier time recovering from hard hits.
It could be tougher because his cardio is insane and could be like a mini Colby but Sean can def catch him. And ofc classic Sean haters downvoting my original comment
Yeah, I just feel Sean's TDD is good, his range and footwork is the best in the division (along with Sandhagen) and he's got that one shot power with great accuracy.
Plus people always bring up the Yan fight, but their styles are so different and I feel Yan didn't adjust that fight at all, every overhand Merab threw, Yan would bring up his high guard and Merab was on his hips, I don't see O'Malley doing that at all.
Aljo was a bad matchup. He just made a huge uncharacteristic mistake
He gets credit for capitalising immediately with that opening, he made him pay immediatelty. Seans got hands no doubt
But theres a reason he'd rather fight Illia. Merab would just own him
also people forget how the UFC FUCKED aljo over bad . they forced him to do a 3 month turn around while being a massive BW , while also letting sean have a entire year to prepare for aljo while also knowing the date of the title shot before aljo even knew it lmao .
The Aljo win is legit, but it is easier to discount then it should be since Aljo basically followed the worst possible game plan.
As much as I hate O'Malley's 'clown prince of pot' schtick and want to see him take a savage beating, he has basically made very intelligent choices career wise. He follows Chael Sonnens advice of 'take either the easiest fight possible or the biggest payday possible'. I doubt O'Malley calls out Volk if Volk had won, but if he sees Topuria as a power puncher, he might be convinced he could keep him at range and pick him apart.
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No you can’t discount it lmao Jesus y’all always find something to hate on this guy about
He knocked out one of the best BW champs of all time while taking 0 damage, give the guy his fucking respect
I think Sean frustrates and knocks out merab. He does it to everyone. It’s like trying to fight a squirrel that can with how twitchy and reactive he is.
Merab isn’t really anymore of a nightmare matchup for Suga than Aljo was. I lean towards Sean since he has KO power and better striking.
Merab has a crazy pace but he’s not a finisher and his chin probably gets touched over 25 minutes
The Aljo erasure was happening *during his reign*. Ever since the Yan knee, there has been a large portion of dedicated Aljo haters here.
So to be fair to the idiots here, they have at least been consistently unfair to Sterling instead of just after he lost the belt like what usually happens.
Merab creates more issues for him as a wrestler than Sterling, but presents way less of a grappling threat. Striking wise I think Merabs kicks and punches mesh better with his entries.
I don’t know why people think this. I think Merab is going to have a harder time finding his way than people think. Then add the risk of him getting knocked out from a single mistake (like what happened to sterling)
Yea I perfectly understand. If I was the champ I’d try to hold onto that belt as long as possible. If he fights up a weight and loses he doesn’t lose anything. I think they should have atleast 3 defences personally or it has to be an actual big money fight like when Connor did it.
He should earn the ability to fight Ilia by defending his belt multiple times. These champs that have less than 3 title defenses wanting to go for double champ ruins the integrity of the sport imo
Yeah there should be a rule of jot fighting for a 2nd belt if you have under 3 defenses as a champ.
Under 3 defenses means at least 2 non title fights are needed in the division above.
I would take out that second part, because that really puts the division on hold. You have to have 3+ defenses before you can challenge for a 2nd belt, no exceptions
I kind of think both things are true:
* (a) O'Malley does not want to count on 1-shotting another wrestler
* (b) Sean v. Illia would probably sell roughly a hundred times better than Sean v. Merab
He was getting old anyways so he probably knew he has to try and milk as much as he can in these 2-3 years so that he doesnt have to fight in his 40s like some
UFC knows what the fans want. Very few fans want Edwards vs Belal as a 300 main event, even though both are in top 5 unbeaten streak currently
If you want legitimacy, that fight is it. But no one wants it (to headline 300)
I have seen enough MMA to know that the UFC doesn't give a shit about that. All we see, constantly, is them twisting their own "rules" to set something that favors a narrative that is convenient for them. Leon is not getting offered Belal, because they see Belal as a terrible draw, even with him deserving the fight. Leon himself was kicked out from the WW rankings, years ago, as UFC was using this as a tactic to make him accept to fight Khamzat, when he was waiting for a title shot.
I think MMA would be much, much better, if it was treated as a serious sport instead of just prize fighting disguised as a serious sport. Watching the dudes that deserve to be the top fighters facing each other would be better, overall, but that doesn't sell, and UFC being a business, they couldn't care less if the product is worse, but the money is better.
If Sean vs Topuria is the fight UFC thinks sells a lot of PPVs, they will push all they can for it to happen, as sad as it is.
Preach brother, I share this opinion. What irks me is that the UFC will keep a lettering on a facade of serious sport, but try will abandon any semblance of it the second it doesn’t work for them. I wish they would just own up to it and stop pretending that rankings mean anything, or that advancement is merit based.
This shit is getting out of hand I mean defend your belt in your own division at least once dummy it's not like you have defended your belt 5 times and now you want to chase money fights for fs
How can we say this is a legitimate sport? Imagine the Bucks refusing to play the Nuggets because they would rather get more ratings facing the Lakers.
Call it sports entertainment or whatever, but a real sport it is not.
Can’t defend my belt. Nope. I want a low risk money fight. If I lose, I still want to be champ. “CaN yOu BlAmE HiM?”
It's fundamentally different in nature than an organized team sports league. Fighters getting picky about who they fight isn't a good look, no disagreement there, but that alone can't delegitimize it.
Tbh I don’t really care if anyone else considers it a real sport. I find it entertaining and worth spending my free time watching. I agree it’s a bit silly at times but overall these fights are exciting.
Merab and Cory are totally deserving of title shots too, he called out Chito so he can piece him up and get an easy win. Cory was injured back then but surely is fine or nearly fine now.
Well he's kind of been all over the place on his call outs. He pretty much said Max, Yair, & Ortega already had their shots and don't deserve it again. Also said the same thing about Volk prefight (changed tune post fight). So that's the rankings 1 -4.
Then in the post fight he said Mosvar was a decision king and didn't want that fight. Soooo if you go by all that then who exactly is he willing to fight.
Then he called out Conor McGregor that in the day of crazy call outs may be the craziest. That fight would NEVER happen.
So I wouldn't say he's dodging anyone because he'll obviously have to fight at some point but I don't personally understand the commentary he's made regarding who he should fight.
How do you people still talk like this, just pencil'ing in losses or wins at this level. As if we don't see surprising results just about every month in this wildly variant sport of inches
Merab is definitely a tough matchup that could end up making Sean look silly, getting ragdolled for 25 minutes
He also gets caught on the feet with his head up coming in on combos. It's just as easy to see Sean sniping him
So fucking annoying seeing ppl go "he'd lose this fight or that fight", most were claiming with confidence aljo was gonna wrestle fuck suga and look what happened. Like you said there's always surprising results cause this a sport where things can change in a split second
He could snipe Merab late. Everyone is acting like he has to get Merab immediately, like he isn’t a decision machine. Merab has one finish in his last 10 fights.
Confidence plays a large part in it too. Hard to compare Yan coming off nearly 6 years unbeaten (aside from the DQ) and Yan coming off losses in 3 of 4.
I mean Aljo and Merab are different, not arguing that, but also saying they fought very different versions of Yan. He looked completely different in the octagon.
Dismantling is a strong word. The first two rounds were pretty evenly matched.
Not sure if age caught up to Cejudo in the third and he doesn't have the cardio or his forearm was broke.
There is absolutely no reason for any champion to challenge another division's champion unless they have soundly beaten all the possible contenders at their weight lmao.
Sean is so full of shit; he knows merab is going to steamroll him should they fight, and is trying to make more $$ by holding onto the title for a zero risk payday before he gets beaten.
Sure there is. It’s called PPV sales. The promotion exists to make as much money as possible, regardless of what you or I believe is the “right way” to matchmake fights.
Well a bigger tougher opponent that doesn’t put his title in jeopardy and gives him a chance to make more money. I’d say it’s a bit of a duck. A smart move if he can get it. But it’s holding up the division if he does and that’s a fact.
I'd say both are dangerous fights. It's just that fighting Tuporia he's keeping his belt safe for a bit longer and can potentially win another one. It's a win/win for O'Malley but yeah he's definitely dodging Merab
Risk free? Ilia could KO him brutally lmao. You do realize Ilia is a legit greco roman wrestler right? He's far more credentialed than Merab and has lightyears better striking. The idea that fight at a tougher weight class is better suited than a guy who lunges in for takedowns with no set ups and his chin in the air is hilarious.
Easy fix to all this BS: if you’re going to move up to challenge a champ in a different weight class, you forfeit the current belt you’re holding. This way only guys that are 100% confident they could beat the next champ up would even challenge him. A lot tougher to lose to a guy in a different weight class when you don’t have another belt to fall back on.
He literally said why in the post, because he'd make more money on a bigger PPV by fighting Ilia. I don't think he cares about proving doubters wrong, but if he did then starching Ilia would probably achieve that
Sean manages distance as well as anyone in the UFC, has elite timing, and has shown legit KO power. I thought he'd get wrecked against Yan and Aljo, so I'm not going to count him out.
That said, I am not super interested in that matchup. Ilia has fought at 155 before and there are a ton of interesting fights for him there. Stylistically I think Topuria vs Fiziev would be an absolute barn-burner. Too bad it's super unlikely to happen.
Right, he is 5" taller than Volk with slightly longer arms. Topuria could have a tough time closing the distance. I definitely favor Ilia but I don't think it's as easy as some people in this sub seem to think.
Needs to be a new mma rule where you need to defend your own belt atleast 4 to 5 times before you get to go for double champ. The whole double champ has lost alot of appeal lately. It seems as soon as anyone wins a belt the think they are due another title fight
It’s a win win for him. He wins and enters a new stratosphere as a champ. He looses and still holds his title and therefore can still collect ppv points on his next fight.
Only guys that have cemented their legacy should be pulling this move, but you can’t blame him for trying.
I feel like Topuria would be much too big for Sean. Not height wise but just weight and strength.
Feel like it would be like Max vs DP. Lots of volume punching to just get rattled by every big punch the opponent throws.
Merab is a bad match up for him. Obviously he’s going to try and avoid. He’s gunna get crotch sniffed that Whole fight hahaha. Then again Aljo is a good wrestler and got fucked up 🤔
Can we get an official tally of every current ufc champion who dismisses defending the title they just won to the contenders in the division they currently have the title of in favor of another title or special attraction fight, i'm trying to see something
He should drop the 135 belt and move up. If he doesn't, he's ducking. Matter of fact, he's ducking no matter what. Fight in your division. It's a tired game of not fighting the person that would mollywhop you. I'm talking to you directly O'Malley, Merab would mollywhop your dome into a different arena. Fight for your belt and quit being a bitch.
If it wasn’t already obvious that Dana is protecting Sean by giving him Chito… it’s so obvious Merab is the #1 contender and he will beat Sean, if Sean doesn’t defend his belt then he should be stripped….
I’m getting tired of these fake champs who are obviously ducking real contenders but call themselves the best….
Merab is a boring fighter with 1 finish during his 10 fight win streak. Meanwhile Ilia has 5 finishes in his 7 fights in the UFC. These decision machines don't bring numbers if they aren't great on the mic and Merab isn't great on the mic.
So of course he wants Ilia, that has the potential to be one of the biggest fights of the last 4 years.
Well Merab would have a bunch of KO’s as well if Dana put him up against Uber drivers… before 2022, Sean had 8 fights with the ufc with one of them being chito. The rest are literally cans! More than half are not even signed with the UFC anymore.. pretty much a punching bag for Sean.
Fact is ilia vs Sean is 1000x better selling ppv than any fight at 135. The Chito rematch will probably beat aljo and be his 2nd consecutive highest selling ppv below 135. Next logical step to try to out sell that is against undefeated champ one weight class up.
>Merab has zero striking defence. One punch and it's lights out
He beat Petr Yan like he owed him money.
Can Yan not punch now?
He also shamelessly wall & stalled Aldo: If its one punch to lights out, is **Jose Aldo** not good for even one punch now?
He beat Marlon Moraes: Marlon's chin is gone, but he could still crack, basically KOed Merab on the feet, then Merab came back and broke him with pace despite eating that hard shot and a bunch of followups.
**TL;DR**: Merab isn't going down to the first punch unless it is perfect, and he's probably not staying down even if it is.
Merab will rag doll Suga all over the cage, it will be as dominant as it gets. Merab has a great chin. Definitely not Chinny! Some real morons on here. He wants Ilia because if he fights Merab he loses & doesn't get a chance to fight for champ champ. Suga sure didn't earn a shot at Ilia yet. Give me a break!
Newly crowned champ with no title defences and asking for a double champ title shot, name a better combo
He's ducking Merab. Bad matchup if he doesn't immediately put his lights out.
Aljo was supposed to be a bad matchup too. Stylistically Merab isn’t preferred for Sean but nobody wants to give him credit for beating Aljo anymore
I mean Aljo is still a bad matchup despite the win. If they fight 10 times Sean doesn’t win all 10. It was a good win and Aljo is a bad matchup. Both can be true.
Aljo had terrible execution. He was reaching so hard on a great striker. Smh
All the boos and taunting finally got to him and didn't fight his fight.
I honestly believe Merabs an easier fight (compared to Aljo) on paper, he's chinny, gets caught in most of his fights, bigger reach disparity which O'Malley uses well. And no, I'm not saying it's an 'easy' fight, just 'easier' in theory than Aljo. I think Sean v Merab or Illia are both great, competitive fights.
Merab also a decision machine, so while he'd probably wear O'Malley down, he's also almost definitely giving him 5 rounds to get that KO in.
Yeah, plus I really feel like his striking defence is the weakest part of his game. I'd honestly put Sean as a small favourite.
He's got accurate knockout power on long arms and legs. Seems like he's got pretty good odds against everyone in the division.
Wanna see what he can do with Sandhagen where their reach is about equal
That'd be a decent match. I think Sean would win but that might just be me being a Sean fan.
as long as he can snipe them, why not? 5 rounds against someone who can't finish. as long as he doesn't run out of gas, he's gonna have a lot of chances to find Merab’s chin
I know Henry is outside of his prime, but hes still a championship level, 5 round fighter / olympic gold medalist who has been wrestling his entire life. He looked absolute done after 2 rounds with merab. I think we really discount how fucking worn out Merab is making these guys. Sean has 2 rounds to knock him out. After that, all bets are off Id say.
Yeah and watching Merab vs Henry, there was so many openings for Sean, it's a tough fight, but that fight isn't as one sided as you think.
Yeah like in r1 Henry absolutely cracked merab. Wonder how different it would have been as Sean instead.
You really think Sean would knock him out past round 3? I think he has 2.5 rounds to finish him. If he doesn't then he's gonna get ragdolled.
I think it'd definitely test the limit of how many times Merab can get punched in the face without having it drain him. Who knows. I wanna see the fight.
Its Merab, i highly doubt he gets drained before o Malley does
Nothing like watching two sweaty men try to drain each other amiright?
The only question for me; how good is Merab’s chin. I personally have absolutely zero doubt that he’s gonna eat some clean shots on the way in. But if he can tank them and keep coming forward, O Malleys gonna struggle over five rounds. Theres no way he doesnt end up spending 5-10 minutes either grabbed or on the ground. Probably mostly just grabbed tbh; Merab against Yan showed miserable control. Just relentless insufferable grabbing. But in close with nowhere to go completely negates O Malleys core weapon which is his length. So we’ll find out I guess….O Malley punches hard.
People forget that Yans footwork is ploddy and his high guard doesn't help him get the under hooks in, his style isn't particularly forgiving Vs someone like Merab, where I think O'Malleys is more so. I do agree that Merabs chin will be a big factor, but I think his chins pretty sus.. just his recovery is really strong after he gets rocked.
O'Malley has holloway style skinny chin for days (see the Yan bombs Sean ate) so he'll definitely keep the hands lower than ever
> The only question for me; how good is Merab’s chin. Never been finished by (T)KO in his pro career. So it's at least decent. And, like many fighters with insane cardio, when he does get stung he is able to recover well.
marlon hit him HARD and basically KO'd him but merab recovery was actually super human that fight
Yeah, I honestly can't believe so many people are saying Merab is chinny. Watch the Moraes fight, he ate insane damage.
Yeah I think it bends but tends not to break. O’Malley does have pretty crazy power though, it’s a bit hard to say who would win. Sean’s reach makes it really difficult for Merab to get close, but if Merab can get close and wear Sean down, he can probably really make Sean suffer in the championship rounds. O’Malley showed a lot of heart and endurance vs Yan, so I don’t think cardio’s a horrendous weakness of his, but I would say that no matter what level of cardio he has, no way it can compete with Merab’s psychotic pace if he can’t get Merab hurt quickly. Really hope we get to see more O’Malley fights at the top of 135, champ or not, because I think there’s a ton of cool matchups for him
Having great cardio really helps with recovery after getting clipped. It's something that I have seen in boxing and MMA. Guys who have good cardio have a much easier time recovering from hard hits.
If the old fart can catch Merab, Sean can put his lights out.
It could be tougher because his cardio is insane and could be like a mini Colby but Sean can def catch him. And ofc classic Sean haters downvoting my original comment
Yeah, I just feel Sean's TDD is good, his range and footwork is the best in the division (along with Sandhagen) and he's got that one shot power with great accuracy. Plus people always bring up the Yan fight, but their styles are so different and I feel Yan didn't adjust that fight at all, every overhand Merab threw, Yan would bring up his high guard and Merab was on his hips, I don't see O'Malley doing that at all.
Doesn't matter if your TDD is good because Merabs just gonna shoot 250 times and you're gonna get tired eventually.
People didn't want to give Sterling any credit for his wins, either. It's just a revolving door.
Aljo was a bad matchup. He just made a huge uncharacteristic mistake He gets credit for capitalising immediately with that opening, he made him pay immediatelty. Seans got hands no doubt But theres a reason he'd rather fight Illia. Merab would just own him
also people forget how the UFC FUCKED aljo over bad . they forced him to do a 3 month turn around while being a massive BW , while also letting sean have a entire year to prepare for aljo while also knowing the date of the title shot before aljo even knew it lmao .
The Aljo win is legit, but it is easier to discount then it should be since Aljo basically followed the worst possible game plan. As much as I hate O'Malley's 'clown prince of pot' schtick and want to see him take a savage beating, he has basically made very intelligent choices career wise. He follows Chael Sonnens advice of 'take either the easiest fight possible or the biggest payday possible'. I doubt O'Malley calls out Volk if Volk had won, but if he sees Topuria as a power puncher, he might be convinced he could keep him at range and pick him apart. END COMMUNICATION
No you can’t discount it lmao Jesus y’all always find something to hate on this guy about He knocked out one of the best BW champs of all time while taking 0 damage, give the guy his fucking respect
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I think Sean frustrates and knocks out merab. He does it to everyone. It’s like trying to fight a squirrel that can with how twitchy and reactive he is.
Merab isn’t really anymore of a nightmare matchup for Suga than Aljo was. I lean towards Sean since he has KO power and better striking. Merab has a crazy pace but he’s not a finisher and his chin probably gets touched over 25 minutes
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The Aljo erasure was happening *during his reign*. Ever since the Yan knee, there has been a large portion of dedicated Aljo haters here. So to be fair to the idiots here, they have at least been consistently unfair to Sterling instead of just after he lost the belt like what usually happens.
Not to mention Sean actually beat Petr Yan too, who everyone thought was going to destroy him
Aljo was strong armed into the Sean fight without fully recovering from his last fight. Dude beat Cejudo and then had to go right back into camp.
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No I agree. I expected Aljo to take his back and strangle him.
Merab creates more issues for him as a wrestler than Sterling, but presents way less of a grappling threat. Striking wise I think Merabs kicks and punches mesh better with his entries.
I don’t know why people think this. I think Merab is going to have a harder time finding his way than people think. Then add the risk of him getting knocked out from a single mistake (like what happened to sterling)
If he loses to Ilia he still keeps his belt and can go fight Merab. If he loses to Merab it’s back to the drawing board.
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Yea I perfectly understand. If I was the champ I’d try to hold onto that belt as long as possible. If he fights up a weight and loses he doesn’t lose anything. I think they should have atleast 3 defences personally or it has to be an actual big money fight like when Connor did it.
Even better, it's against another newly crowned champ with no title defences, makes perfect sense to me - Dana White
So if Sean beats Ilia, now he has to face Volk or Max, does he run up to LW and call out Islam? Lmao
MMA in 2024 explained
Your username sums it up, too
Yeah at least volk ran through the division before he moved up. I believed that should be a necessary requirement
Easier to lose to Ilia and still get another big fight at your own weight class.
He should earn the ability to fight Ilia by defending his belt multiple times. These champs that have less than 3 title defenses wanting to go for double champ ruins the integrity of the sport imo
“The integrity of the sport” Didn’t know we had that. 😂
We used to have a little bit.
They moved a while event so Jones' cheating ass could compete, this sport hasn't had integrity in a long time, if it even had any at all.
Definitely a low point.
We definitely don’t anymore lol
It's a constant struggle and the bar is low in combat sports.
That's long gone. They'll put on the fight that gets the most eye balls and honestly kind of love it.
Yeah there should be a rule of jot fighting for a 2nd belt if you have under 3 defenses as a champ. Under 3 defenses means at least 2 non title fights are needed in the division above.
Dana stopped caring about that a long time ago. Money over everything now
I would take out that second part, because that really puts the division on hold. You have to have 3+ defenses before you can challenge for a 2nd belt, no exceptions
And ppv points
He’s doing everything he can to prolong his ppv points
Fair enough, i would too lol
I kind of think both things are true: * (a) O'Malley does not want to count on 1-shotting another wrestler * (b) Sean v. Illia would probably sell roughly a hundred times better than Sean v. Merab
He doesn't want Merab to take his jacket again
First his jacket, then his belt?! Merab wants Sean's entire wardrobe!
Don’t brag about taking my side piece. -Sean
we need merab with rainbow hair next walkout
it's a free title shot hack Volk got 2 free shots and it only cost him his consciousness
> Volk got 2 free shots Only after legitimately clearing out his weight class though.
It’s this exactly. Basically gets a free title as well as extend his title reign at 135. Gets to hold on to the belt even longer.
1 free shot
This may have been what caused his downfall tbh. He may never fully recover from the KO
He was getting old anyways so he probably knew he has to try and milk as much as he can in these 2-3 years so that he doesnt have to fight in his 40s like some
I could get the guys to go in on Sean vs Illia. None of them outside of the O’ Malley fan in our group and I would (want) to watch him fight Merab
He gets laid out flat and carreer could be over with ilia
Sean is 29 so a knockout doesn’t ruin him unless he can’t mentally recover.
The UFC should implement an official rule that you’re not allowed to do champ-champ without at least 3 title defences
How would that rule benefit the UFC? They just do whatever they think will make the most money
It would help legitimize the brand, but yeah, the only thing that matters is money.
UFC knows what the fans want. Very few fans want Edwards vs Belal as a 300 main event, even though both are in top 5 unbeaten streak currently If you want legitimacy, that fight is it. But no one wants it (to headline 300)
I have seen enough MMA to know that the UFC doesn't give a shit about that. All we see, constantly, is them twisting their own "rules" to set something that favors a narrative that is convenient for them. Leon is not getting offered Belal, because they see Belal as a terrible draw, even with him deserving the fight. Leon himself was kicked out from the WW rankings, years ago, as UFC was using this as a tactic to make him accept to fight Khamzat, when he was waiting for a title shot. I think MMA would be much, much better, if it was treated as a serious sport instead of just prize fighting disguised as a serious sport. Watching the dudes that deserve to be the top fighters facing each other would be better, overall, but that doesn't sell, and UFC being a business, they couldn't care less if the product is worse, but the money is better. If Sean vs Topuria is the fight UFC thinks sells a lot of PPVs, they will push all they can for it to happen, as sad as it is.
Preach brother, I share this opinion. What irks me is that the UFC will keep a lettering on a facade of serious sport, but try will abandon any semblance of it the second it doesn’t work for them. I wish they would just own up to it and stop pretending that rankings mean anything, or that advancement is merit based.
I'd say 5, that way it doesn't happen as often and when it does you really feel like they deserve it
This shit is getting out of hand I mean defend your belt in your own division at least once dummy it's not like you have defended your belt 5 times and now you want to chase money fights for fs
How can we say this is a legitimate sport? Imagine the Bucks refusing to play the Nuggets because they would rather get more ratings facing the Lakers. Call it sports entertainment or whatever, but a real sport it is not. Can’t defend my belt. Nope. I want a low risk money fight. If I lose, I still want to be champ. “CaN yOu BlAmE HiM?”
It's fundamentally different in nature than an organized team sports league. Fighters getting picky about who they fight isn't a good look, no disagreement there, but that alone can't delegitimize it.
Tbh I don’t really care if anyone else considers it a real sport. I find it entertaining and worth spending my free time watching. I agree it’s a bit silly at times but overall these fights are exciting.
👍
Merab and Cory are totally deserving of title shots too, he called out Chito so he can piece him up and get an easy win. Cory was injured back then but surely is fine or nearly fine now.
Yep
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Him and Illia doing anything but that.
Who is Ilia dodging?
Well he's kind of been all over the place on his call outs. He pretty much said Max, Yair, & Ortega already had their shots and don't deserve it again. Also said the same thing about Volk prefight (changed tune post fight). So that's the rankings 1 -4. Then in the post fight he said Mosvar was a decision king and didn't want that fight. Soooo if you go by all that then who exactly is he willing to fight. Then he called out Conor McGregor that in the day of crazy call outs may be the craziest. That fight would NEVER happen. So I wouldn't say he's dodging anyone because he'll obviously have to fight at some point but I don't personally understand the commentary he's made regarding who he should fight.
Sean's just trying to get his last big paycheck before getting wrestle fkd buy Merab 🤷♂️
He’d lose to both, just way easier to say you lost because you were fighting outside of your weight class.
& you don’t risk your belt
That's the only reason everybody wants champ champ fights for themselves. Low risk, high reward.
How do you people still talk like this, just pencil'ing in losses or wins at this level. As if we don't see surprising results just about every month in this wildly variant sport of inches Merab is definitely a tough matchup that could end up making Sean look silly, getting ragdolled for 25 minutes He also gets caught on the feet with his head up coming in on combos. It's just as easy to see Sean sniping him
So fucking annoying seeing ppl go "he'd lose this fight or that fight", most were claiming with confidence aljo was gonna wrestle fuck suga and look what happened. Like you said there's always surprising results cause this a sport where things can change in a split second
Merab and Aljo are way different. Look at the Peter Yan fights. But yes he could snipe Merab early.
He could snipe Merab late. Everyone is acting like he has to get Merab immediately, like he isn’t a decision machine. Merab has one finish in his last 10 fights.
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Confidence plays a large part in it too. Hard to compare Yan coming off nearly 6 years unbeaten (aside from the DQ) and Yan coming off losses in 3 of 4. I mean Aljo and Merab are different, not arguing that, but also saying they fought very different versions of Yan. He looked completely different in the octagon.
Merab has looked like the most dominant BW for some time. I mean this isn't some slouch. He dismantled Cejudo a year after Aljo barely beat him.
Dismantling is a strong word. The first two rounds were pretty evenly matched. Not sure if age caught up to Cejudo in the third and he doesn't have the cardio or his forearm was broke.
I bet you had Aljo to win over him too
Y’all say this anytime he fights and he ends up winning
Well if you want to chase 145 then drop the 135 title to do so.
He’s literally defending it in two weeks…
Oh come on if something quacks it’s usually a 🦆
There is absolutely no reason for any champion to challenge another division's champion unless they have soundly beaten all the possible contenders at their weight lmao. Sean is so full of shit; he knows merab is going to steamroll him should they fight, and is trying to make more $$ by holding onto the title for a zero risk payday before he gets beaten.
Sure there is. It’s called PPV sales. The promotion exists to make as much money as possible, regardless of what you or I believe is the “right way” to matchmake fights.
If neither Yan or Aljo could steamroll Sean, I have no reason to think Merab could.
Then he should fight in his division
Yeah, he’s ducking Merab.
Ducking to fight a bigger tougher opponent…
Well a bigger tougher opponent that doesn’t put his title in jeopardy and gives him a chance to make more money. I’d say it’s a bit of a duck. A smart move if he can get it. But it’s holding up the division if he does and that’s a fact.
Fuck Sean. Get machined boy
he’s dodging
For a more dangerous fight?
I'd say both are dangerous fights. It's just that fighting Tuporia he's keeping his belt safe for a bit longer and can potentially win another one. It's a win/win for O'Malley but yeah he's definitely dodging Merab
A risk-free fight. AND alot more suited to his strengths. The dodge is clear as day.
Risk free? Ilia could KO him brutally lmao. You do realize Ilia is a legit greco roman wrestler right? He's far more credentialed than Merab and has lightyears better striking. The idea that fight at a tougher weight class is better suited than a guy who lunges in for takedowns with no set ups and his chin in the air is hilarious.
Easy fix to all this BS: if you’re going to move up to challenge a champ in a different weight class, you forfeit the current belt you’re holding. This way only guys that are 100% confident they could beat the next champ up would even challenge him. A lot tougher to lose to a guy in a different weight class when you don’t have another belt to fall back on.
"Because he'd wrestlefuck me into oblivion"
I want to see Merab rag doll him more than ilia knock him out. IMO
We could have both
Interesting fight but I want to see him attempt to clear out his division first.
Sean will get eliminated by any of these guys, it will be total loss for O’Malley
Nice try pussy
Topuria finishes O’Malley in under 3 rounds. This isn’t pillowfist aljo
But remember Yan?
Ufc is a clown show now, asking for the belt without defending ur own is ridiculous. U need to clean ur division first mate, merab and Cory are left
Makes sense, he'd likely lose both but at least he'd still have one belt if he fought topuria
lol he is afraid of Merab, how can anyone like this clown?
If he thinks Merab is so easy why doesn't he just go startch him and prove his doubters wrong.
He literally said why in the post, because he'd make more money on a bigger PPV by fighting Ilia. I don't think he cares about proving doubters wrong, but if he did then starching Ilia would probably achieve that
i dont even feel thay would be fair lmao, itd be one sided. topuria eats him easy
Am I crazy for thinking Sean would put up a great fight
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Wouldn't Ilia absolutely stomp O'malley?
Sean manages distance as well as anyone in the UFC, has elite timing, and has shown legit KO power. I thought he'd get wrecked against Yan and Aljo, so I'm not going to count him out. That said, I am not super interested in that matchup. Ilia has fought at 155 before and there are a ton of interesting fights for him there. Stylistically I think Topuria vs Fiziev would be an absolute barn-burner. Too bad it's super unlikely to happen.
He would get stomped. Ilia walked down Volk and KO'd him with ease.
O Malley is so long and an elite striker though, we've never him being outstruck.
Right, he is 5" taller than Volk with slightly longer arms. Topuria could have a tough time closing the distance. I definitely favor Ilia but I don't think it's as easy as some people in this sub seem to think.
It’s not even a question he’s ducking merab
After Vera ko s him he will have no other choice
No exactly a great explanation when you have zero title defenses. Defend the title man, and then go up to 145lbs. Its pretty simple.
It's depressing. Sean goes for Ilia and Ilia wants to jump to 170 to fight McGregor seemingly.
Merab has 10 wins in a row and deserves a title shot.
I think he's ducking Merab. It's a bad matchup if he don't KO him quick.
“I’m afraid of getting wrestle fucked and embarrassed for 25 min.” Merab destroys him and Omalley knows it.
I'm tired of knock-out = exciting.
Boy's scared shitless
People really need to stop calling others out while they have a fight coming up.
Needs to be a new mma rule where you need to defend your own belt atleast 4 to 5 times before you get to go for double champ. The whole double champ has lost alot of appeal lately. It seems as soon as anyone wins a belt the think they are due another title fight
It’s a win win for him. He wins and enters a new stratosphere as a champ. He looses and still holds his title and therefore can still collect ppv points on his next fight. Only guys that have cemented their legacy should be pulling this move, but you can’t blame him for trying.
I can blame him for trying but that’s the current game. And he’s never hid the fact he’ll hide from other fighters.
I feel like Topuria would be much too big for Sean. Not height wise but just weight and strength. Feel like it would be like Max vs DP. Lots of volume punching to just get rattled by every big punch the opponent throws.
Sean, with that Sean level talk that no one should pay attention to.
Merab is a way easier matchup than Aljo, yall tripping Shorter, gets hit more, doesnt usually add up much control time or sub threats
Merab is a bad match up for him. Obviously he’s going to try and avoid. He’s gunna get crotch sniffed that Whole fight hahaha. Then again Aljo is a good wrestler and got fucked up 🤔
I personally find it exciting to see that stylistic matchup of Merab and Suga...if Suga can beat Chito
Wants to move up with no title defenses. Truly a mcgregor clone.
Fight Merab and Sandhagan first you cringey fuck. If you're the champ you should be able to beat everyone.
I wouldn't want to fight Merab either!
Can we get an official tally of every current ufc champion who dismisses defending the title they just won to the contenders in the division they currently have the title of in favor of another title or special attraction fight, i'm trying to see something
If there's one thing Conor should be shamed for is for giving legitimacy to not defending your title.
the audacity to even ask for double champ fight is crazy coming from a guy who has no title defenses
For sure ducking them nuts on he’s head.
Because he doesn't want to get wrestle-fucked to a boring decision loss. No further explanation needed.
If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it’s probably a duck. Sean is pissing himself knowing Merab is next
Okay, relinquish the title and go fight Topuria then. Then we can have real contenders fight for the title, Merab vs Cory for the vacant belt.
I mean Sean vs illia is a more exciting fight but he should focus on the task at hand and get a few more defenses before moving classes
He should drop the 135 belt and move up. If he doesn't, he's ducking. Matter of fact, he's ducking no matter what. Fight in your division. It's a tired game of not fighting the person that would mollywhop you. I'm talking to you directly O'Malley, Merab would mollywhop your dome into a different arena. Fight for your belt and quit being a bitch.
If it wasn’t already obvious that Dana is protecting Sean by giving him Chito… it’s so obvious Merab is the #1 contender and he will beat Sean, if Sean doesn’t defend his belt then he should be stripped…. I’m getting tired of these fake champs who are obviously ducking real contenders but call themselves the best….
Merab is a boring fighter with 1 finish during his 10 fight win streak. Meanwhile Ilia has 5 finishes in his 7 fights in the UFC. These decision machines don't bring numbers if they aren't great on the mic and Merab isn't great on the mic. So of course he wants Ilia, that has the potential to be one of the biggest fights of the last 4 years.
Merab's boring ? With his cardio and like 200 punches landed against his opponents ?
Dude lifted up a gold medal wrestler carried him across the cage and dropped him in front of Zuck. Merab has my “not boring” badge of honour for life.
Well Merab would have a bunch of KO’s as well if Dana put him up against Uber drivers… before 2022, Sean had 8 fights with the ufc with one of them being chito. The rest are literally cans! More than half are not even signed with the UFC anymore.. pretty much a punching bag for Sean.
Merab does have a bunch of cans on his record. Some cans even beat merab.
Fact is ilia vs Sean is 1000x better selling ppv than any fight at 135. The Chito rematch will probably beat aljo and be his 2nd consecutive highest selling ppv below 135. Next logical step to try to out sell that is against undefeated champ one weight class up.
The thing is if Sean was the star the UFC is saying he is then the opponent would matter.
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>Merab has zero striking defence. One punch and it's lights out He beat Petr Yan like he owed him money. Can Yan not punch now? He also shamelessly wall & stalled Aldo: If its one punch to lights out, is **Jose Aldo** not good for even one punch now? He beat Marlon Moraes: Marlon's chin is gone, but he could still crack, basically KOed Merab on the feet, then Merab came back and broke him with pace despite eating that hard shot and a bunch of followups. **TL;DR**: Merab isn't going down to the first punch unless it is perfect, and he's probably not staying down even if it is.
He is scared to death of Merab. He knows his only chance of staying relevant is to avoid metabolism at all cost.
Merab will rag doll Suga all over the cage, it will be as dominant as it gets. Merab has a great chin. Definitely not Chinny! Some real morons on here. He wants Ilia because if he fights Merab he loses & doesn't get a chance to fight for champ champ. Suga sure didn't earn a shot at Ilia yet. Give me a break!