Sean O’Malley Picks Teammate to Beat Umar Nurmagomedov in Rumored Match

Sean O'Malley genuinely believes his talented teammate can beat Umar Nurmagomedov.

After upsetting the debuting Patrick Mix in June, MMA Lab product Mario Bautista (16-2) aimed high with a callout of Umar Nurmagomedov (18-1). According to the latest rumors, the UFC will be granting that request. Bautista and Nurmagomedov may be squaring off in the main attraction of an undetermined upcoming UFC Fight Night card. Predicted dates have ranged from UFC Vancouver on Oct. 18 to UFC Qatar in Nov. 22, but nothing has been made official by the promotion yet.

O’Malley has served as a teammate of Bautista in Glendale, Arizona, for several years. While he noted on his appearance of the “Overdogs Podcast” on Friday that the fight was coming together, he did not specify its date or location. Bautista closed as a betting underdog against Mix, and O’Malley believes fans were overlooking Bautista after his controversial split decision win over Jose Aldo. The former champ has offered high praise for Bautista, and is picking his teammate to beat Nurmagomedov if and when the fight happens.

Teammate Picks Teammate in Five-Round Bantamweight Headliner

The former bantamweight champ discussed on the “Overdogs Podcast” a myriad of topics including his teammate’s upcoming battle.

“Even when Mario fought ‘Patchy’ Mix, people were counting Mario out,” O’Malley pitched. “I was like, Mario, just because of his fight with Aldo that people thought was boring or whatever–they just for some reason forgot how good Mario was. Mario is super skilled, very excited for his fight against Umar. And I’m picking Mario in that fight. I really think he can go out there and get the job done.”

Bautista is undefeated in eight straight outings dating back to 2022. Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov suffered his first professional loss in a failed title bid against Merab Dvalishvili in January.