'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
#2 UFC bantamweight Sean O'Malley
Sean O'Malley isn't even ranked, but he's one of the biggest draws in the UFC right now.
Trending
The up-and-coming fighter, who brutalized Kris Moutinho at UFC 264 in July, revealed that he was offered a fight on the UFC 268 card headlined by Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington.
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
O'Malley turned the fight down, something he says didn't sit well with Shelby. 'Sugar' said that the UFC matchmaker "treated him like a piece of s**t" and "acted like a f***ing tool."
“I don’t even know if I’m supposed to say this…Sean Shelby was mad at me. Dude, I don’t wanna fight in New York. It’s far, the taxes are ridiculous, and Tim (Welch) has no-Gi or no, ADCC trials that weekend.”
“And he told me that before I even potentially had a fight. So, that’s his thing, and I’m not gonna say, ‘No. I have a fight’. We’re doing it, especially when I could fight like a month later in Vegas. And Sean Shelby was just like, mad and like, ‘Fine. Go hang out with (American rapper) 6ix9ine’. Like, just acting like a f**king tool, dude. So, I don’t know if I should’ve said that or not. But it’s like, dude, come on. What do you do?”
“Yeah, so, it’s like, ‘Cool, dude. Treat me like a piece of s**t’. No, it’s like, dude, I would rather not deal with him at all and just deal with (UFC president) Dana (White).”
O'Malley has been fairly outspoken about a variety of issues UFC fighters face. He also criticized the fact that he gets paid the same amount irrespective of his opponent and the card he's fighting on.
#1 UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou
When Francis Ngannou knocked out Stipe Miocic to become the UFC heavyweight champion, he understandably wanted a few months of downtime before defending the belt he had worked so hard to acquire. But the UFC had other plans.
An interim heavyweight belt was created, with Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane contesting it in the former's hometown of Houston, Texas. But there was no real need to create an interim championship, especially since Ngannou had fought only three months earlier.
Ngannou wasn't pleased with the UFC's matchmaking and labeled it a "slap in the face," saying:
"My only issue with that fight is that it's not a title fight. I'm the champ and I'm here, I'm not hurt. I was ready to go. Coming up with this interim pattern, that was like a slap, like a disrespect. You know like, the belt that I work hard for, be patient and get the title, and two months, barely three months after they were just matching it (Gane vs Lewis) like it was nothing. We can throw as many titles out there so you will not get the same value."
