Payton Talbott: Sean O'Malley fight 'no-brainer' if Petr Yan loses UFC belt - MMA Junkie

Payton Talbott thinks UFC 333 can have a large impact on his immediate future.

Talbott, a rising contender in the UFC's bantamweight division, called out former champion Sean O'Malley following his latest win over Deiveson Figueiredo (25-7-1 MMA, 14-8-1 UFC) in the co-main event of UFC 332 in Salt Lake City, Utah. After the fight, Talbott (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) grabbed the microphone, and called for O'Malley – who's waiting on the wings for another title opportunity.

Talbott can see the fight happening should Merab Dvalishvili beat UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan in their trilogy bout at UFC 333 next month. O'Malley has lost twice to Dvalishvili, making a third fight difficult to sell, and has defeated Yan, making for an appealing potential rematch.

"We'll see what happens with Merab and Yan," Talbott said at the UFC 332 post-fight press conference. "I think, if I'm being transparent, I think if Merab wins, then it's a no-brainer. He's already fought Merab plenty of times and lost. If Yan wins, I don't know. We'll have to see. He's in an entirely different position than me. We'll see where my rank goes. I understand the position that I'm in. It's a fun fight. I think both of us should want it. He's called the best striker in the division, and I'd like to put that to the test."

Talbott is making plenty of noise at 135 pounds. He now has back-to-back wins over former champions, having stopped Figueredo, ex-UFC flyweight champion, and outpointed Henry Cejudo, a former two-division UFC title holder. The 28-year-old thinks he's proven he's among the elite at 135 pounds, which allows him to call for the bigger matchups like the O'Malley fight.

"It just means that I'm high level and I'm special," Talbott said. "Like I said, nobody has ever done that to him. Henry's face has never looked like that after fighting anyone. I think I'm just at a different level."