Morning Report: Sean O’Malley says rematch with Petr Yan is ‘the biggest fight in bantamweight history’

Sean O'Malley has thrown his hat into the bantamweight title picture following his second consecutive victory, a second-round stoppage of Aiemann Zahabi at UFC White House. The win places him among the top contenders at 135 pounds, but he's not the next challenger—at least not officially.

Current bantamweight champion Petr Yan and Merab Dvalishvili are expected to run it back for a third time, though nothing has been formally announced. O'Malley suspects injury complications are keeping the bout from the books, likely on Yan's end. He believes the champion is wise to fully recover before facing Dvalishvili, who demands perfect preparation and full health from opponents.

O'Malley holds a previous win over Yan from 2022 and has publicly campaigned for a rematch. He calls a second fight with Yan "the biggest fight in bantamweight history" and argues the UFC would be taking a significant risk by pursuing a third Yan-Dvalishvili encounter instead. His main obstacle remains a pair of losses to Dvalishvili, the two-time champion.

Despite those setbacks, O'Malley remains confident he can defeat Dvalishvili again. He views a path forward: secure a win over Yan, then capture the belt from Merab, which would give him victories over Yan, Aljamain Sterling, and Dvalishvili—three of bantamweight's all-time greats. Though he acknowledges a trilogy with Dvalishvili holds little public appeal, O'Malley sees it as his clearest route to redemption and an undefeated resume among elite competition.