Sean O’Malley: Ilia Topuria ‘irrelevant’ with a loss at UFC 298 — ‘He’s talking a lot of s—t’

Ilia Topuria has put a lot of pressure on his shoulders for the biggest fight of his career.

The undefeated (14-0) “El Matador” has already declared himself Ultimate Fighting Championship’s (UFC) Featherweight champion without yet fighting for the title — he’s even trying on belts! And if he can dethrone reigning undisputed titleholder, Alexander Volkanovski, at UFC 298 this weekend (Sat., Feb. 17, 2024) inside Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., that dream will become reality.

Topuria, 27, hasn’t been quiet about his plans, either.

The Spaniard has already discussed possible options going forward — such as Conor McGregor. In terms of cross-division fights, that one is probably the most unlikely for myriad reasons. Bantamweight champion, Sean O’Malley, on the other hand, has made it very clear he hopes for a future “Champion vs. Champion” clash with Topuria.

It all hinges on whether or not the Topuria can get past “The Great.”

“I think this guy’s gonna win,” O’Malley said on his TimboSugar Show podcast. “It’s hard to go against ‘Volk,’ isn’t it? I’m just going with Ilia because I’m going to keep manifesting that f—king Sphere September fight.

“He better hope he f—king does because he’s talking a lot of game, a lot of s—t,” he continued. “He’s got a documentary coming out, he’s got a f—king movie coming out, he’s calling out Conor McGregor. Like, dude, if he goes and loses to ‘Volk,’ he’s irrelevant. He should be thanking me for talking about him.”

For O’Malley’s hopes to come true, he’ll have to play his part by earning a successful first title defense against Marlon “Chito” Vera at UFC 299 in Miami, Fla., next month (Sat., March 9, 2024).

Easier said than done.

LIVE! Watch UFC 298 PPV On ESPN+ Here!

WORLD FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP! Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., on Sat., Feb. 17, 2024, for the first time in more than two years with its latest pay-per-view (PPV) show. In the ESPN+-streamed PPV main event, reigning Featherweight roost-ruler, Alexander Volkanovski, will defend his 145-pound strap against undefeated surging Spanish contender, Ilia Topuria. In addition, former Middleweight kingpin, Robert Whittaker, will finally square off with mercurial mauler, Paulo Costa, in UFC 298’s co-feature. UFC 298 will also feature the returns of Ian Garry, Geoff Neal, Henry Cejudo, Merab Dvalishvili and so much more!

Don’t miss a single second of EPIC face-punching action!

• STREAM UFC 298

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 298 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET (simulcast on ESPN at 8 p.m. ET), before the pay-per-view (PPV) main card start time at 10 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 298: “Volkanovski vs. Topuria” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.