"He can put your f**king lights out" - Sean O'Malley sets sights on "scary" Ilia Topuria next, shrugs off Merab Dvalishvili as "very beatable"

Sean O'Malley was on hand at UFC 298 as Ilia Topuria dethroned Alexander Volkanovski to claim the featherweight title, while Merab Dvalishvili cemented his status as the top contender in the bantamweight division. 'Suga' recently revealed that he would rather pursue double champ status by facing 'El Matador' instead of defending his belt against 'The Machine'.

Speaking to Ariel Helwani of The MMA Hour, the bantamweight champion stated:

"There's Merab, there's Cory [Sandhagen], there's Ilia. Those three are all potential for next. Again, I'm boom, laser focused, dialed, [Marlon] 'Chito' [Vera], March 9th. Whatever happens after that I'm very confident in. Merab's very beatable. Henry [Cejudo] about knocked him out. Marlon Moreas about knocked him out. Merab's got a crazy good gas tank, he's got good wrestling, he's a dangerous opponent."

O'Malley continued:

"When I think of a scary opponent, what makes me go, 'whoo', that's Ilia. Ilia gives me that. He can put your f**king lights out, change your life. That's a scary opponent. Merab's a dangerous opponent. He's got that good cardio and he can eventually put your lights out after you gas out, but he didn't finish Henry. We'll see. I like big, big fights. What it comes down to is what do the people really, truly want to see? If they want to see Merab, that's what's next."

Check out Sean O'Malley's comments on Merab Dvalishvili and Ilia Topuria below:

O'Malley previously expressed interest in facing Topuria for the featherweight title, labeling the newly-crowned champion as his Eddie Alvarez, whom Conor McGregor famously defeated to claim double champ status. It is unclear if 'El Matador' has any interest in the bout. However, 'Suga' will have to get through UFC 299 before his next opponent is determined.

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Merab Dvalishvili hopeful Sean O'Malley retains title at UFC 299

Dana White revealed that Merab Dvalishvili's next fight will be for the bantamweight title. 'The Machine' weighed in on the upcoming UFC 299 title bout between Sean O'Malley and Marlon 'Chito' Vera at the UFC 298 post-fight press conference, stating:

"I want to fight O'Malley because I was calling him [out] since 2018 and he's champion now. I hope he will keep the belt and I can fight him. I want to take his belt and I see today, he was wearing [a] nice jacket, white jacket so I want his white jacket."

Check out Merab Dvalishvili's comments on facing Sean O'Malley for the title below:

Dvalishvili was able to dominate Henry Cejudo at UFC 298, winning the bout via unanimous decision. The No.2-ranked bantamweight is now on a 10-fight win streak, with his last three victories coming against former champions.