Sean O’Malley expressed his amazement at Zabit Magomedsharipov’s statement that he turned down a fighting opportunity for the #UFC title, explaining that Zabit was a rising star before his sudden retirement, and giving him opportunities like this in a situation in which he was a prize any fighter would wish for.
A former ACB featherweight champion, Magomedsharipov joined the UFC in 2017 and quickly earned four victories with three of those wins coming via submission. The 32-year-old took a significant step up in competition in 2019 to face longtime UFC veteran Jeremy Stephens at UFC 235, but the Russian passed that test by winning a unanimous decision.
