UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley has expressed an interest in fighting newly crowned featherweight champion Ilia Topuria next if he successfully defends his title against Marlon Vera at UFC 299, but former two-division champ Daniel Cormier doesn’t think it’s a good idea at this stage.
“I can tell you what I don’t want to see,” Cormier said on YouTube. I don’t want to see him (Topuria) fight Sean O’Malley. I don’t need to see those guys fight just yet because neither of them have defended their championship.
“I don’t know that we should continue to allow for these guys to get a belt and immediately leave the division. That’s what happened with Islam [Makhachev] and [Alexander] Volkanovski… Islam hadn’t cleared out (the division). He has two title defenses, both against Volk. He’s a 45 pounder. He’s never defended the belt against a lightweight. But again, that fight with Volk was a credit to Volk for what he had done because he had kind of cleared out his division.
“I get it in that instance but if we’re talking to Topuria and O’Malley, these are two guys that haven’t fought anyone in that division. So, I don’t think these guys should fight each other right now. They’ve got work to do.”
For the record, prior to beating Alexander Volkanovski last weekend Topuria hadn’t appeared to be in a hurry to face O’Malley.
“Listen, he has a lot to prove in his weight class,” Topuria told reporters “He’s fighting with No. 6 guy in the ranking, who whooped his ass in the past. I don’t think he’s going to beat ‘Chito.’ I think ‘Chito’ is going to beat O’Malley. But even if he does, he has a lot to prove in his weight division.”
