O'Malley says Topuria is greatest pound-for-pound fighter alive

Former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley declared in a recent YouTube video that lightweight champion Ilia Topuria is the greatest pound-for-pound fighter alive, citing Topuria’s three consecutive knockout victories over Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira. O’Malley made the comments while discussing potential superfights and promotional events, saying Topuria’s recent run of knockouts sets him apart from other contenders.

Topuria rose to prominence when he knocked out Volkanovski at UFC 298 to claim the featherweight title. He then became the first fighter to stop Max Holloway in a title defense at UFC 308, and this year moved up to lightweight and knocked out Charles Oliveira in the first round at UFC 317 to capture the vacant 155-pound belt. That victory made Topuria the 10th fighter in UFC history to hold titles in two weight classes and the first to do so while remaining undefeated in the promotion. He is expected to return to the Octagon in the coming months for his first lightweight title defense.

O’Malley, who lost the bantamweight title to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306, has long expressed interest in a super fight with Topuria and said as much...