Sean O’Malley weighed in on the upcoming UFC lightweight title fight between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira.
In October 2022, Makhachev dethroned Oliveira to become the 155-pound king. Following the disappointing loss, ‘Do Bronx’ bounced back by securing a first-round TKO win against Beneil Dariush in June of this year.
In the meantime, the Russian world champion defended his throne against Alexander Volaknovski.
Oliveira’s win at UFC 289 was enough proof that he earned another title shot. As a result, the former world champion signed on for a rematch against Makhachev at UFC 294 on October 21, which takes place in Abu Dhabi.
The highly-anticipated rematch has led to fans and fighters being split on who they want to win. During an appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience, UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley had this to say about the UFC 294 main event:
“I would love to see Charles f*cking win [at UFC 294]. That would make for a huge trilogy. Maybe call Khabib [Nurmagomedov] out. No, no there’s no shot.”
Sean O’Malley believes Islam Makhachev’s striking is ‘very underrated’
Before becoming a UFC champion, Islam Makhachev was widely considered a grappling specialist. Yet, Makhachev has continued to evolve as a striker and become a well-rounded threat for anyone at 155 pounds.
Earlier this year, Makhachev defended his UFC lightweight title for the first time against Alexander Volkanovski. The Russian world champion had several impressive striking sequences throughout the five-round war, leading some people to give him credit for his improvements.
During the same conversation with Joe Rogan, Sean O’Malley had this to say about Makhachev:
“Islam has very underrated striking. That motherf*cker is skilled on the feet. He’s very technical. He’s underrated on the feet, for sure.”
On October 21, Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira look to emerge victorious in a potential legacy-altering matchup.
On one side, Oliveira has been extra motivated to avenge his loss against Makhachev. With that said, ‘Do Bronx’ must solve the puzzle that led to the Russian’s last twelve opponents coming up short.
Meanwhile, Makhachev plans to continue silencing the doubters. Although he had big shoes to fill once Khabib Nurmagomedov retired, the 32-year-old world champion is on track to solidify himself as one of the greatest Russian fighters of all time.
Watch Joe Rogan and Sean O’Malley talk about Islam Makhachev vs. Charles Oliveira 2 below:
