On March 8, in the main event of UFC 299 in Miami, Florida, USA, O'Malley made the first defense of his title, defeating Marlon Vera by unanimous decision. After the fight, the American expressed his desire to share the octagon with Topuria.
"Sugarcreek, congratulations. Terrific performance! Now the long awaited fight against Merab Dvalishvili awaits you. First deal with it," wrote Topuria on his page in social network X.
Recall that Topuria won the featherweight title on February 17 at UFC 298, knocking out former dominant division champion Alexander Volkanovski in the second round.