Sean Brady believes he has done enough to earn another shot at one of the welterweight division’s biggest names.
The Philadelphia native returned to the win column at UFC 328 with a dominant decision victory over Joaquin Buckley. The performance came after Brady suffered a setback against undefeated contender Michael Morales, a fight he willingly accepted despite already being in the title picture.
Now, Brady is looking upward in the rankings once again.
Brady Believes He Has Earned a Bigger Fight
Speaking about his next move, Brady made it clear to MMA Junkie that he wants an opponent from the division’s top tier. He pointed to his victory over former champion Leon Edwards as proof that he had already reached contender status before taking a risk against Morales.
“I was the No. 1 contender after I beat Leon,”
“I was waiting around because the division was jammed up. I took Morales. I lost that fight, but then I came back, took a dangerous fight against Buckley, beat Buckley.”
Jack Della Maddalena Emerges as Preferred Target
With rumors suggesting Kamaru Usman could move up to middleweight, and Islam Makhachev is scheduled to defend his belt against Ian Machado Garry in the main event of UFC 330, Brady sees several options near the top of the rankings.
“I think I deserve a guy in the top five. I know Usman is going to 185, supposedly so that’s kind of what I’m looking for: somebody in the top five – Jack, Bonfim, Prates.”
Looking at the rest of the rankings, Brady suggested a matchup between Carlos Prates and Michael Morales while naming former champion Jack Della Maddalena as a logical opponent for himself.
“He’s on a little bit of a skid right now, but he’s still a former champion, so I think that fight would definitely make sense.”