Sean O’Malley isn’t just calling out names anymore; he’s calling out numbers. Fresh off his hard-earned win over Song Yadong at UFC 324, the former bantamweight champion finds himself back in the thick of the title picture conversations, but he is not in a rush to climb it the old-fashioned way.

A fight with Cory Sandhagen has long felt inevitable, almost too perfect on paper. Yet instead of hype or hostility, O’Malley is approaching the matchup with a calculator in hand. Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show, the former champion made his intentions clear.

“I would ask, I would say, can I wait for Peter-Merab and, you know, let that fight play out?” O’Malley explained. That’s option one. Let the title fight happen, keep the door open. But if the UFC wants him active, he has a counter.

“I want to fight for the belt or pay me the same amount as I would for a title fight, and I’ll fight Cory.” That line says everything about where O’Malley is in his career.

He also said he’s always treated fighting as a business and has been focused on maximizing his earnings from day one. Since his current contract pays him significantly more for title fights, he’s open to taking another matchup only if the UFC is willing to pay him at a similar level.

In his own words, “At the end of the day, UFC tells you what to do. It’s not like I’m sitting there f—g saying no, this, no, that. I would ask, I would negotiate, would say, ‘Hey, is there any way I can make the same amount of money?’ And go from there.”

Petr Yan has already signaled that his next defense is likely reserved for Merab Dvalishvili, who still carries enormous equity after his historic run at 135 lbs. If that rematch is locked in, O’Malley waiting on the sidelines makes business sense. So does taking another fight, but for the right price.

That’s where Cory Sandhagen becomes the pivot point. Stylistically, it’s a dream matchup. Two rangy strikers, creative exchanges, and a fight that fans have been asking for. But for Sean O’Malley, the risk-reward ratio matters more than ever.

Why take a non-title fight that delays his title opportunity and pays less? That’s the question he’s forcing the UFC to answer. And according to the other name in this equation, that answer might not be enough to make the fight happen.

Cory Sandhagen questions Sean O’Malley’s intentions as he opens up on their possible matchup

Cory Sandhagen isn’t convinced he’ll ever share the Octagon with Sean O’Malley. Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show, ‘The Sandman’ didn’t dance around the uncertainty.

According to him, “I’d say we’re pretty close to the peaks of our careers, if not right in the middle of them, I don’t know why we wouldn’t fight.” On paper, that logic is airtight. Timing-wise, it doesn’t get much better than this. But then came the hesitation.

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“I’ve noticed he doesn’t say much about me that could be too controversial,” Sandhagen added. He isn’t convinced ‘Suga’ actually wants the fight and believes that if it never happens, it won’t be because of him, but because “O’Malley didn’t want to fight me, not the other way around.”

At UFC 324, both O’Malley and Umar Nurmagomedov had the opportunity to break into the title picture. While ‘Suga’ made the most of his co-main event spot, Umar had a lacklustre win over Deiveson Figueiredo, an aging former flyweight champion, whom Umar should have dominated and finished. Not only is Umar outside the title picture, but he’s also not likely to land a money fight against O’Malley either, making Cory the frontrunner.

Cory Sandhagen sees a fight that should happen because it makes sense competitively. O’Malley sees one that only makes sense if it matches his title value. Until the UFC decides whether to bridge that gap with money or movement in the title picture, the matchup fans want most remains stuck in negotiation limbo. Whether it ever becomes reality will depend less on willingness and more on whether the numbers finally meet the moment!