Written by Sean Brady | Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Sean Brady wants to leave no doubt he’s the next man in line for the UFC welterweight title.
Current champion Jack Della Maddalena is expected to defend against former lightweight champion Islam Makhachev later this year, and Brady wants to be on the same card as that title fight, especially if it can all take place during the UFC’s annual trip to Madison Square Garden in New York.
Brady’s preferred opponent? The undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov.
“I seen through a little birdie that Shavkat was saying something about him coming back in November or December, so if he’s coming back in November, I want to fight soon, but I would wait and fight him at MSG on the same card as Jack and Islam, and then that’s a true No. 1 contender’s fight,” Brady said on The BradyBagz Show. “Because he was guaranteed a [title] fight, I beat the No. 1 guy, whoever wins that will be the true No. 1 contender, so I would like to do that. We’re going to reach out this week and see if that’s an option.”
Brady is currently in the thick of the welterweight title chase on the strength of a three-fight win streak capped off by a dominant submission win over former UFC champion Leon Edwards this past March. He is 18-1 as a pro, with his lone loss coming to Belal Muhammad in October 2022.
Coming off of the Edwards win, Brady has been eager to return to action, but he’s been frustrated in his search for an opponent.
“I have been trying to fight since my last fight,” Brady said. “They called us about a month ago and asked about me and Ian [Machado Garry] for Chicago. I was in, didn’t hear anything from the UFC or anything after that. So a couple of weeks go by, last week Lloyd [Pierson] reaches out—our manager who also manages Ian—they’re like, ‘What do you guys want to do?’
“At this point, October 4, there’s rumors Joe Pyfer might be on that card, might not be on that card, I’m like, ‘Let me get on that card.’ That’s in Las Vegas. And then there’s a Vancouver card, I was like, ‘Or let us main event that.’ Haven’t heard anything back.”
A win over Rakhmonov would all but seal the deal for Brady’s championship hopes as Rakhmonov was poised to challenge Muhammad for the welterweight title at UFC 310 before Muhammad withdrew due to a bone infection in his foot (Rakhmonov instead went on to defeat short-notice replacement Ian Machado Garry).
Other options on Brady’s radar are former champion Kamaru Usman or a rematch with Muhammad, though the rivalry between those two might remove them from the equation for now. Otherwise, Brady also likes the sound of a fight with Colby Covington.
“It’s ass because I was No. 1, now I’m No. 2,” Brady said. “I was calling this kid [Garry] out for months who’s No. 6, and nothing’s happening. I’m not saying Ian’s scared to fight me. I don’t think Ian’s scared to fight anybody, but I don’t know what he wants or what is going on with him. If he’s trying to sit for a title, I don’t know what is going on with that, but from what I’ve heard Usman and Belal are probably fighting, so that takes those guys off the table for me. It just sucks where I’m at. I’m trying to get a fight and I don’t want to go back too far. Ian’s already No. 6, so I don’t know who else is there.”
“I will say this also though, if I’m not going to get a top 5 guy and Ian’s not going to fight me, I would love to beat Colby Covington’s ass,” Brady added. “I would fight him just to stay active. … I don’t like the shit that he does. I would like to beat him the f*ck up. There’s no one in the UFC I don’t actually like besides Colby. I don’t like Colby, so I’ll beat up Colby.”