Sean O'Malley doesn't want to put off a battle until the next summer. At UFC 280 in October, O'Malley defeated Petr Yan by a split decision to earn his biggest career victory. The victory propelled O'Malley to the top of the UFC's bantamweight rankings and established him as Aljamain Sterling's likely next title challenger, but there's a catch: Sterling isn't looking to fight anytime soon. After competing twice in 2022, Sterling, who also competed at UFC 280 and decisively defeated T.J. Dillashaw, recently stated that he would like to take a break. He indicated that June would be the best time for him to return. That latency might be simply too prolonged for O'Malley. In a recent interview with MMA Junkie, Sterling said that he had "earned his time off" and won't fight again until the middle of 2023. If so, O'Malley (16-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) would appreciate the opportunity to compete for the interim championship while the champion is out. And he believes that Marlon Vera would make for the best foe in a rematch. “I get it, Aljo cuts a lot of weight,” O’Malley said on his YouTube channel. “He’s probably already back up to 165,170, he’s probably like, ‘I don’t want to cut weight again in the next couple of months, I want to enjoy it.’ … He wants to wait eight months. I get it, I do, but say the No. 1 contender, ‘Suga’ Sean O’Malley is ready to go in March, and the next guy in line, in my opinion, should be ‘Chito’ Vera. He just beat Dominick Cruz, beat Frankie Edgar, beat some good guys. “Why not have a little interim belt, and then the winner of the interim belt fight Aljo when he’s ready?” The two biggest names in the bantamweight category, O’Malley and Marlon Vera, have a history together. At UFC 252, Vera stopped O'Malley, a defeat that O'Malley even now argues. O'Malley is certain that a rematch between the two would generate significant revenue for the UFC given their respective histories and names, but the conditions would need to be ideal. O'Malley comments that despite promising to do so shortly, he hasn't yet spoken with the UFC after his victory over Yan. Whatever the case, it is most apparent that O'Malley won't be wanting to wait on the sidelines for eight months unless there is an extremely compelling cause. “It’s hard to say but I just think March is a good time frame for me,” O’Malley said. “I like fighting in March. If they have a big card in March, in Vegas, you can probably see me on there.”

In his post-fight interview, welterweight contender Neil Magny stated his desire to take on the Brazilian. After defeating Daniel Rodriguez by third-round submission at the most recent UFC Vegas 64 event, Magny used the microphone to make a noise for "Durinho," saying: "Gilbert Burns, let's do it in Brazil. It's January 21, right around the corner. Let's just bring to the top five, let's go!" Later, during a press conference following the fight, Magny expressed his desire to face the Brazilian again, referring to him as "one of the toughest" and "the best grappler in the division." Magny said when asked how he thought the conflict with Burns was progressing: "I could see it going either way." Even "Durinho" responded to "The Haitian Sensation," congratulating him on the victory and praising him for hitting the accomplishment. Additionally, he said that while the UFC has previously scheduled an opponent for him, if that opponent does not appear, he would be interested in taking on Magny in Brazil. Although it hasn't been confirmed, Burns is scheduled to face Jorge Masvidal in Brazil; whether or not Magny will get his chance to face "Durinho" soon remains to be seen. Gilbert Burns appears set on competing against Jorge Masvidal, a fellow welterweight contender. It now appears that 'Durinho' will face Masvidal at UFC 283 in Brazil, despite earlier reports that the two combatants were eager to make this happen. Burns recently posted a humorous still image of Pablo Escobar standing in an empty swimming pool and gazing into the distance from the hit Netflix series Narcos. He implied that he was impatient to have the contract signed by captioning the photo "Jorge???" 'Durinho' lost to Khamzat Chimaev by unanimous decision in their bout, which earned both athletes the fight of the night prize, in April of this year. Masvidal, who previously lost to Colby Covington and twice in a row to the then-welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, is currently on a losing streak of three. Both fighters are coming off defeats, so they will be trying to make up for it in their subsequent octagon appearance. The UFC has yet to make an official statement regarding the status of this welterweight matchup, and Jorge Masvidal has not yet responded to this satirical poke. Everything leads to them doing so soon in the octagon, and both combatants appear eager to make it happen.

Later this month, Marlon Moraes will make his PFL debut under a new moniker. Promotional spokesperson confirmed on Monday night that Sheymon Moraes will compete against the former WSOF champion in the PFL Championship on November 25 at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden. Due to a concealed injury to Shane Burgos, the opponent was swapped. The preliminary card will feature the 145-pound contest. On Monday night, PFL formally announced the new match on social media. Seven years ago, the two fought at WSOF 22. Marlon won the bout by rear-naked choke in the third round as they dueled for the WSOF bantamweight championship. Former World Series of Fighting champion Marlon (23-10-1) is attempting to halt a four-fight losing streak that effectively ended his UFC career. After suffering his fourth straight loss to Song Yadong in the first round of UFC Vegas 50 in March, Moraes had declared his retirement from the sport. However, he later changed his mind and signed with the PFL to fight as a featherweight. "Magic" finished 1-5 with five stoppage defeats after getting a shot at the bantamweight title against Henry Cejudo at UFC 238 in June 2019. His lone victory came against José Aldo by split decision at UFC 245 in December 2019. Sheymon (14-6) competed in the 2022 featherweight season but only managed to go 1-1, which wasn't good enough to get him into the playoffs. The Brazilian is attempting to recover from a June loss to Lance Palmer by unanimous decision. Sheymon had won three in a row prior to his decision setback, including victories against Jesse Stirn and Lazar Stojadinovic in 2021. The lightweight season-ending match between Kayla Harrison and Larissa Pacheco will be the biggest feature at the PFL Championships event. The main card of the event will be available on ESPN+ PPV, but the cost has not yet been disclosed.

Dmitry Bivol, who defeated Gilberto "Zurdo" Ramirez on Saturday in Abu Dhabi, may have secured the title of Fighter of the Year after defeating Saul "Canelo" Alvarez in May. Bivol needed a decisive victory to keep his WBA light heavyweight title. Ramirez has had success throughout his career by being an aggressive fighter who applied a lot of pressure and delivered a lot of punches. Ramirez rarely let go of Bivol, even when the latter allowed himself to be caught in the ropes, therefore this aggression was rarely on display. Ramirez resisted getting involved in those exchanges, and Bivol would punch and circle away. Bivol employed his standard strategy, maintaining a strong defensive shell to block incoming blows and working from a sharp jab. Using the jab as a blinding weapon, Bivol would then unload strong right hands that regularly struck cleanly to Ramirez's face. In the final three rounds, Ramirez did try to exert more pressure, but Bivol's slick and effective style of play still allowed the Russian to win the majority of the exchanges. Even in the decisive round, when Ramirez needed to be knocked out, Bivol unleashed a barrage of flurries that seemed to energize Ramirez. "You know, the lion is not the biggest animal in the jungle," Bivol said after the fight of his ability to force Ramirez to go backward. "But he's king. Yeah, Zurdo is bigger than me but it doesn't matter." Ramirez was disappointed with the outcome since he had long lobbied for a bout with Bivol and believed he had what it took to become the first person to beat Bivol and claim a world title in the second weight class of his career. Bivol's final scores were 118-110, 117-111, and 117-111, bringing his lifetime record to 21-0. Ramirez lost for the first time in his career, dropping to 44-1. Bivol is in a fortunate situation right now, with what appear to be two major fights on the horizon. Bivol has stated that facing Artur Beterbiev, who currently holds the WBC, WBO, and IBF championships is his main priority to establish an undisputed champion at light heavyweight. As Beterbiev appears committed to a scheduled contest with Anthony Yarde in early 2023, Bivol may decide to take on Alvarez in a rematch that would yield significant financial benefits. Bivol stated his intention to fight Beterbiev as soon as possible despite the profile and money that come with the Alvarez rematch. "I proved myself. I can beat the best guy in the world," Bivol said. "And now, I beat another guy who doesn't know what losing is. I have another goal, I want to be undisputed champion. But everything is not up to me. It doesn't depend only on me who I fight next. We have to agree as a team on which is better for us. But I hope they will listen to me and what I want." When asked if he would accept the rematch against Alvarez if Beterbiev couldn't fight until the second half of 2023. "Of course, but I'm like a kid who has a dream," Bivol said. "I want to go to this dream. My heart wants it but my brain and my mind understand how things are going. I want to fight for another belt. If I don't have this chance in four or five months, I will take another fight."

On November 12, the main event of UFC 281 at Madison Square Garden will pit Israel Adesanya vs Alex Pereira. Many predict that this contest will be the middleweight title of the UFC's most difficult test to date. Although Adesanya lost to "Poatan" twice in the past, albeit in kickboxing, the Kiwi is now a far more skilled combatant. In contrast, Pereira, who had only three UFC fights under his belt, was given a title opportunity against Adesanya. The Brazilian is renowned for having deadly KO power, which he has already proven in his young MMA career. In his forthcoming fight with Alex Pereira, Israel Adesanya intends to adopt a Floyd Mayweather-like image. Adesanya will attempt to defend his UFC middleweight title against a fighter who has twice defeated him, including the lone knockout loss in The Last Stylebender’s career. Since they last fought, a lot has changed, and their trilogy fight will be a big test for the champion, who has never lost at 185 pounds during his illustrious era as UFC champion. In preparation for UFC 281, "The Last Stylebender" intends to look up to Floyd Mayweather, who fought Manny Pacquiao in 2015. 'Pacman' was defeated by Mayweather through a unanimous decision in what was undoubtedly the biggest bout of his career. Later, "Money" claimed that he entered the battle believing it to be the most crucial one for him to win in his entire career. Adesanya recently stated on his YouTube channel, with melancholy music playing in the background, about Mayweather's remarks: "He [Mayweather] always just thought like, ‘Forget every other fight. If there’s ever a fight I have to win, it’s this one.' I feel that. That’s me right now. If there’s ever a fight, I have to win, it’s this one. That’s why everything is different this camp. There’s no excuses. If there’s ever a fight I have to win, it’s this one.” Adesanya is certain that his opponent would struggle once sensing the early pace he intends to establish in their next fight, despite the fact that many are dreading the worst for the UFC superstar. “I honestly think within the first five minutes, even within the first three minutes, the pace that we’re gonna bring he’s not gonna be able to keep that,” Adesanya told AllStar. “In the first round, you’re gonna see him start to fold, he’s not gonna be able to keep that high pace. I know the kind of pace I can bring. He’s not going to last. If this fight has to go each round, until someone falls. Trust me, I know who’s going stand. I know who’s going to be left standing.”

Islam Makhachev is growing increasingly frustrated with the UFC as the newly-crowned lightweight champion prepares to make his first title defense following his dominant submission victory over Charles Oliveira last month in Abu Dhabi. The Dagestani native and Khabib Nurmagomedov protege was thought to be fighting Alexander Volkanovski in Perth, Australia, next year. However, that matchup appears to be in jeopardy judging by Makhachev’s latest Tweet in which he told the UFC to ‘stop playing games’ and send the contract for his next fight. I’m not sure what UFC wants, February Australia or March Vegas, I honestly don’t care about location and opponent, I never choose opponents. Just send a contract and stop playing games — Makhachev Islam (@MAKHACHEVMMA) November 5, 2022 “I’m not sure what UFC wants, February Australia or March Vegas, I honestly don’t care about location and opponent, I never choose opponents. Just send a contract and stop playing games,” Makhachev posted yesterday. Makhachev’s comments come after Volkanovski cast doubt about Islam’s commitment to the matchup by questioning whether the latter actually wants the fight following their face-off at UFC 280.

Julianna Peña is focused on getting a third and final fight with Amanda Nunes. The ‘Venezuelan Vixen’ dethroned the ‘Lioness’ at UFC 269, where she submitted the then-UFC bantamweight champion by second-round rear-naked choke in one of the greatest upsets in UFC history. An immediate rematch was scheduled, and both women served as the headliner of UFC 277 this past July. This time, Nunes dominated Peña, as she knocked down the newly crowned champion several times and fended off submission attempts en route to a unanimous decision. With such a dominant showing, there was discourse around whether Peña should receive an immediate rematch, like the one she gave to Nunes. Arguments have been made in favor of and against it, but Peña believes the answer is obvious. “There’s no other fight I can see,” said Peña [H/T Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated]. “I gave her a rematch, immediately, within six months. It’s time for her to return the favor. Not much else needs to be said other than we’re 1-1. This needs to be solved in a trilogy fight. Let’s make it happen.” For Peña, avenging a loss to Nunes and reclaiming the championship would be great. “Amanda was able to dig deep,” said Peña. “Something I find really interesting is that, after she lost to me, there were so many excuses as to why she lost. For me, there are no excuses. I could come up with excuses, but I’m not here to do that. Let’s settle this fair and square in a trilogy.” Nunes has yet to announce her return to the Octagon, but the two-division champion has a few options to consider. She could complete a different trilogy with Valentina Shevchenko, return to the featherweight division or wait for the winner of Ketlen Vieira vs. Raquel Pennington, which could very well serve as a title eliminator.

By defeating Petr Yan in a split decision at UFC 280, Sean O'Malley defied the odds and the predictions of many others, including Bryce Mitchell. O'Malley unquestionably demonstrated that he belongs in the top tier of the bantamweight class, even though many thought it was contentious. Mitchell added his name to a lengthy list of competitors who criticized O'Malley's decision victory over Yan. However. 'Thug Nasty' also acknowledged that he only once watched the bout and didn't keep score. The featherweight champion couldn't deny that he was enthralled by the show. Added the 28-year-old: "I only watched it once. Maybe if I rewatched it, I wouldn't have the same opinion. I don't know. But I thought that Yan won. I thought he won every round but I was just watching it more just cause it was exciting, you know. I wasn't even thinking. I wasn't even trying to keep score. It was exciting. I was thoroughly entertained by the fight. But I just remember after the fight having this overwhelming sense of confidence that Yan won." Recently, Bryce Mitchell and Sean O'Malley got into a Twitter argument over 'Sugar's' matchup with Petr Yan at UFC 280. After "Thug Nasty" said that the bantamweight star wasn't deserving of his match against Yan, O'Malley accused Mitchell's family of incest. In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA, Mitchell was asked for his opinion on O'Malley's remarks. The featherweight champion declared firmly: "Ya, he called me inbred... You know, I'm gonna deal with that when I see him." The possibility of a future confrontation between Mitchell and O'Malley was also broached. Given his height, "Sugar" will inevitably go up to featherweight in the future, according to "Thug Nasty" (5ft 11in). Mitchell thinks they'll fight when it happens. "He's six-foot something tall... He needs to move up a weight class. And I do believe that we're gonna clash." Yan was expected to defeat O'Malley in a fight that "Sugar" wasn't deserving of in the first place, according to "Thug Nasty." After defeating "No Mercy," Mitchell made some remarks, to which O'Malley responded: “Your dad f***ed his sister to make you.”

If newly-crowned UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev thinks Alexander Volkanovski will be an easy fight, he can think again. That’s according to New Zealand’s Dan Hooker, who thinks Makhachev might be overlooking City Kickboxing’s Volkanovski ahead of their proposed champ vs. champ super-fight to determine the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Volkanovski might be moving up a weight class, but Hooker assured the reigning featherweight king will be able to match Makhachev in strength and hold his own in the grappling department due to him being the shorter, stockier fighter. “For Islam to turn around very quickly and to call out Alexander Volkanovski, who I feel like they’re doing it because obviously it’s a chance at the No. 1 pound-for-pound (spot), but I feel they’re kind of looking down and being like, ‘Oh man, we’ll go snatch up this featherweight real quick,” Hooker, who was submitted by Makhachev at UFC 267, told Submission Radio in a recent interview. “But they’re really in for a whole lot of trouble. That’s an incredibly difficult man to hold on the ground. Like, he keeps saying he’s short and stuff like that, but holding him on the ground, holding a guy that’s that stocky on the ground is incredibly difficult. So I feel like he’s in for an incredibly tough test in Alex Volkanovski in Perth.” Makhachev invited Volkanovski to the cage for a face-off following his submission win over Charles Oliveira at UFC 280 in the hopes of setting up a lightweight title fight at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia. Both men are thought to be in negotiations for the matchup, but the UFC has yet to make it official.

Charles Oliveira is not returning to the Octagon soon. In his most recent appearance, Oliveira failed to reclaim the then-vacant UFC lightweight championship after he was submitted by Islam Makhachev at UFC 280 this past October. At his post-fight press conference, ‘Do Bronx’ promised to return and vie for gold again, but when that would be was up in the air. “I really don’t know what I would choose to happen [next] because at the end of the day, you never know exactly what the promotion is going to choose,” said Oliveira. “They change minds all the time, so who am I to say something? The truth of the matter is Charles Oliveira is still the No. 1 contender in the division. “So what we’re going to do is go back home, see my family, talk to my managers, assess the matters [and] maybe butt heads a little bit with the UFC,” continued Oliveira. “I’ve always done everything the UFC has wanted from me. I’ve always fought in other people’s homes, so basically, we’re just going to wait a little bit. And there’s nothing much for us to actually choose. We’re going to be home and negotiate it from there.” It appeared as though the negotiation between Oliveira and the UFC went well, as a rumor of his return started going around on Friday. That rumor was that the ex-champion would square off against Rafael Fiziev at UFC 283, the upcoming pay-per-view event scheduled for Jan. 21 at Jeunesse Arena in Brazil. As it turned out, Oliveira was nowhere near ready to return so soon after his loss to Makhachev, so a fight with Fiziev was not true. “Not gonna happen,” wrote Oliveira on Twitter in response to the rumored fight. “I need a break. Thank you guys!”

Beginning in 2023, Kayla Harrison will no longer compete in Professional Fighters League (PFL) tournaments. Olympic gold medalist in judo, according to PFL founder Donn Davis, signed on as the promotion's inaugural pay-per-view (PPV) fighter in March 2023. Harrison won't participate in the standard PFL season formats in 2023, where contestants compete four times a year for the title and $1 million. The inaugural season of the PFL's women's featherweight division will begin in 2023 as well. In her 15-fight career, Harrison has only contested once at 145 pounds, but she views that as her potential future category as more athletes move up to that weight. She will give each bout her whole attention. That will enable her to pursue her long-term objective of being regarded as the top fighter in women's MMA. “Yeah, this will be my last season,” Harrison said. “I’m 32. When I tell you that it is a mental and physical grind to get to this title, it certainly is. “I can’t even imagine trying to make 145 pounds four times in six months. I think that is, for me, impossible. I’m hypoglycemic. It would be a health risk, and I wouldn’t be performing at my best if I did that to my body. I know it’s time for me to be patient and get the big fights.” On November 25, 2022, in New York City, Harrison hopes to win her third straight PFL tournament championship. The 2022 PFL Championship's main event will feature the judo master preparing for a trilogy match versus formidable Brazilian foe Larissa Pacheco. “There’s a chance [this is my last fight at 155 pounds],” she said. Currently, Harrison claimed that she hardly ever finds the time to do anything other than train and get ready for fights during the PFL season, and it's a challenging task to take on, especially considering that she's done it for three years running. Harrison claimed she was assured the organization will make every effort to support her pursuit of high-profile fights that would enable her to solidify her position as the finest female fighter in the world after concluding a period of free agency by re-signing. Harrison and Bellator champion Cris Cyborg has long been discussed in the context of a potential crossover match, and the PFL recently signed former UFC fighter Aspen Ladd to its roster. Harrison hopes to devote all of her attention to those battles after winning on November 25 rather than continue with another PFL season. “I have everything I want,” Harrison said. “I want for nothing. Everything I have is enough. I’m grateful and blessed beyond measure. Financially abundant. Three titles let’s not get greedy, I’m happy with that. I’m ready to be patient and wait for the fights that are really going to catapult my legacy.”

The bout between Korean fighter Jung Chan-sung, better known as the Korean Zombie, and Georgia's Giga Chikadze will headline the UFC's February 4 tournament in Seoul (South Korea), according to Georgian media. Chan-sung has previously expressed a desire to fight in his native Seoul, which may be the last bout of his fighting career. The Korean had his last fight at UFC 273 on April 9 against Alex Volkanovski for the featherweight title. The Korean Zombie lost the fight by TKO in the fourth round. He has 17 wins and seven losses under his belt. Chikadze, 33, lost to Calvin Kattar by unanimous decision at UFC on ESPN 32 in January 2022. He has 14 wins and three losses under his belt. After Chiakadze’s brutal loss to Calvin Kattar at UFC on ESPN 32 in January, Jung (17-7 MMA, 7-4 UFC) made sure to fire back at Chikadze (14-3 MMA, 7-1 UFC), who called him an easy task for UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. Chikadze’s loss to Kattar marked his first in the UFC. Prior to fighting Kattar, Chikadze was lobbying to be a replacement opponent for Volkanovski vs. Jung and admits he overlooked Kattar by thinking too far ahead. What do you think of this matchup? Let us know in the comments!