A few days ago, Ilya Topuria announced that he would not compete until the spring of 2026. Although this jeopardized his sporting status, the “wrestler” decided not to defend his belt at the beginning of the year, claiming that he was going through a difficult personal moment. Many fans and competitors They attacked him for this decision, but unexpected allies also emerged.
Such is the case of former bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley, a fighter who, until not long ago, would cringe every time he talked about Topuria. However, the lightweight champion’s difficult family situation prompted the American to take a stand in favor of his old rival. “Your condition is bad. What’s worse is that it was made public. When you go through this kind of thing, you definitely can’t prepare well for a fight. If you put the kids in the middle… That Elijah has two…that’s a very difficult situation to deal with. “I really feel so sorry for him.”
When he was champion, Sean O’Malley thought about moving up the division and facing Topuria at featherweight. But the bullfighter’s victory over Holloway made him rethink his decision. And what’s more, When Oliveira knocked out the Hispanic Jorge, the American claimed that Topuria was the best fighter in the UFC.. As we can see, things have changed a lot in recent years.
Sean O’Malley will face Song Yadong at UFC 324 in January. This is the evening that Topuria was scheduled to appear once again to defend his lightweight belt. Despite the absence of the Georgian-Hispanic, UFC 324 promises to be one of the most important events of 2026. Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes will battle it out for the women’s bantamweight belt and Justin Gaethje and Buddy Pimblett will compete for the interim 155-pound belt. The winner must face Topuria in the spring or summer.