UFC bantamweight contender Marlon Vera claims that he accepted a rematch with Sean O’Malley but his rival didn’t want to take the fight.

Vera and O’Malley met last summer at UFC 252. O’Malley came into the fight with an unbeaten record, but early on in the first round, he suffered an ankle injury that caused him to lose his footing and fall to the mat, where Vera finished him with strikes. Since then, O’Malley has returned to the cage with a brilliant TKO win over Thomas Almeida, while Vera lost a unanimous decision to Jose Aldo in his last outing. With Vera and O’Malley battling it out for the No. 15 ranking in the UFC bantamweight division, a rematch makes sense.

There have been many fans who have called for the rematch and Vera himself has said that he wants it. According to “Chito,” the UFC actually offered him the chance to fight O’Malley again and he said yes to it. However, Vera claims O’Malley didn’t respond. Taking to his social media, Vera explained his side of things in response to a fan who asked about it.

He declined. I got offered, said yes and silence from him. https://t.co/6UqN371M2a

— Chito Vera (@chitoveraUFC) April 11, 2021

He declined. I got offered, said yes and silence from him.

Following O’Malley’s win over Almeida, it feels like the UFC will again try to push him against a top-15 opponent, though an aging veteran such as Dominick Cruz seems to be a more likely target. A rematch with Vera makes sense, of course, but the rematch is also a fight that the UFC can do in a year or two. The promotion likes to strike while the iron is hot and with O’Malley coming off of the big win over Almeida, it feels like he will be getting a big name in his next fight, though Vera will be waiting for him if he wants the rematch.

Do you want to see the rematch between Marlon Vera and Sean O’Malley?