As the UFC 303 main event between Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler appears to be in jeopardy, UFC bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley threw his hat in the ring to salvage the June 29 card.
O'Malley posted on social media that he would be willing to fight Jake Paul in an attempt to "save" UFC 303:
Sean O'Malley @SugaSeanMMAI'll fight <a href="">@jakepaul</a> to save UFC 303
O'Malley and Paul have been fairly cordial over the years, so a fight between them wouldn't carry much heat. Paul called O'Malley a "young legend" after he defended his bantamweight title with a unanimous decision win over Marlon "Chito" Vera in March.
When Paul was announced to be fighting legendary heavyweight Mike Tyson in a boxing match this summer, O'Malley picked him to beat the former heavyweight champion, saying, "I just feel like Jake is too locked in," and adding, "[I] think Jake will probably dominate."
Tyson pulled out of the July 20 matchup against Paul and the fight was postponed to Nov. 15, leaving Paul free to accept O'Malley's challenge if he wants to try his hand at MMA.
Of course, a fight between O'Malley and Paul is highly unlikely. Paul is signed to PFL and is expected to make his MMA debut further down the line. He has also been in a lengthy feud with UFC president Dana White, so it's the chances the two of them ever do business together are slim.
Still, the UFC potentially needs to find a last-minute replacement for the UFC 303 headliner. MMA journalist Ariel Helwani reported on Wednesday's episode of The MMA Hour that the fight between McGregor and Chandler "is very much in limbo" and added that "the UFC is working very, very hard right now to figure out a plan B."
It remains to be seen which direction the UFC will go if the main event needs to be replaced, but the clock is ticking as June 29 quickly approaches.
