Sean O'Malley commits to backup fight if Marlon Vera doesn't show at UFC 299, gives his take on Merab Dvalishvili as opponent

Sean O'Malley will look to defend his bantamweight title for the first time this weekend when he faces Marlon Vera in the main event of UFC 299. 'Sugar' recently revealed that he would be open to facing Merab Dvalishvili, who will weigh in as the backup fighter if his opponent misses weight.

Speaking at the media day for the event, the bantamweight champion was asked if he would be willing to face 'The Machine' this weekend, quickly responding:

"100 percent. Yeah, 100 percent."

When asked about the No.1-ranked bantamweight's UFC 298 unanimous decision victory over Henry Cejudo, O'Malley responded:

"Yeah, again, he had a great performance, too. Henry didn't look great by any means, but Merab did what he does. He almost gets knocked out and then wins. It was impressive. He very well could be next. I like having my options open, but yeah, he could be."

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

O'Malley previously claimed that Dvalshvili will be his next opponent as that appears to be the fight the fans want. He labeled the No.1-ranked bantamweight as a dangerous, but not scary, opponent who is very beatable. UFC CEO Dana White has also hinted that 'The Machine' could receive the division's next title shot.

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Marlon Vera reveals Sean O'Malley trash-talk ahead of UFC 299

Marlon Vera will fight for the bantamweight title for the first time in his mixed martial arts career when he faces Sean O'Malley at UFC 299. Speaking at the event's media day, 'Chito' discussed his pre-fight trash-talk with 'Sugar', stating:

"He's a weird guy, dude. He likes weird s**t. I try to stay away from it. The only thing I did was send him a picture of me back and I haven't even read what he said after. I get it, one of his main tools is getting into people's head, but good luck with that. I'm going to f**k you up... I asked him to suck my d**k. I mean, simple as that. I'm not here to be friendly. I'm not here to be respectful. I'm not a karate guy, I'm a fighter so you f**k with me, I'm going to f**king f**k with you. I'm not f**king around, man."

Check out Marlon Vera's full comments on Sean O'Malley below:

The only loss in O'Malley's mixed martial arts career came via first-round TKO when he faced Vera at UFC 252 in 2020. The bantamweight champion has not acknowledged the loss, labeling himself as undefeated.