UFC 269: Sean O’Malley hopes for bout with ‘living legend’ Jose Aldo – ‘That would be a crazy fight’
- Bantamweight star Sean O’Malley fights Raulian Paiva at UFC 269 this Saturday in Las Vegas, but hopes to meet Jose Aldo in the future
- Aldo, the former featherweight champion, picked up a third-straight win at bantamweight last weekend, defeating Rob Font by decision
“Suga” Sean O’Malley is days out from a fight with Raulian Paiva, but has another Brazilian bantamweight on his mind.
The 27-year-old O’Malley, arguably the hottest contender at bantamweight today, will take on the Paiva, one year his junior, on the UFC 269 main card this Saturday in Las Vegas.
Ahead of the event, the American O’Malley (14-1) expressed interest in a future fight with former featherweight champion Jose Aldo (31-7). The Brazilian, 35, recently picked up his third consecutive win at bantamweight, defeating Rob Font last Saturday in Las Vegas. He is now one of the division’s top contenders – and potentially, a future foe for O’Malley.
“[Aldo] is a living legend,” O’Malley told the media collected in Las Vegas ahead of UFC 269. “Just watching him walk out is really cool to see. He is one of the best in the world, for sure, definitely up there in the bantamweights.”
“That’s a fight that I think would be a massive fight: ‘The Suga Show’ vs. Jose Aldo. I think that would be a crazy fight. That would probably be the one fight where I’d be standing across the cage like ‘what … that’s crazy.’ We’ll see how his fights play out.”
While O’Malley would love to fight Aldo, he recognises that the Brazilian is a few rungs ahead of him on the bantamweight ladder. In fact, he believes the former featherweight champ could be in line for a fight with the winner of an anticipated bantamweight title rematch between undisputed champ Aljamain Sterling and interim champ Petr Yan.
“[Aldo] probably will get the next title shot against whoever wins that,” O’Malley said. “I would love to see him get the bantamweight strap.”