Sean O’Malley has weighed in on Ilia Topuria’s upset loss to Justin Gaethje in the UFC White House main event, backing the former champion to rebound from his first professional defeat.
Topuria failed to defend his lightweight title on June 14, with the fight stopped at the end of the fourth round after he and his corner informed the referee he could not continue. He suffered facial injuries in the loss that could sideline him for the remainder of 2026.
“I’m sure it is going to be humbling,” O’Malley said of Topuria’s setback, later adding, “I think Ilia is going to come back better than ever. He’s young still. He was going through some personal stuff, made it out the other side of it but it’s probably still lingering around. I think he’s going to come back.” O’Malley also remarked, “Justin f*cking humbled him, for sure.”
O’Malley compared the result to his own title breakthrough, stating, “Me beating Aljo is probably similar to Gaethje beating Ilia,” and, “Actually, me beating Aljo is probably even more of an upset I’d say. I don’t know, I guess it depends, people’s different perspectives.” His first UFC title win came by second-round knockout over Aljamain Sterling.
At UFC White House, O’Malley delivered a second-round knockout of Aiemann Zahabi, snapping Zahabi’s seven-fight win streak and potentially setting up a clash with Petr Yan as he looks to become a two-time UFC champion.
O’Malley’s coach Tim Welch also weighed in on Topuria’s loss, saying, “I also think, though, like he’s human now,” and suggesting the defeat may change how future opponents approach him: “Now that got exposed a little bit, I think he’s not going to come back as just dominating.”
