In a very short period of time, Sean O’Malley has become one of the most talked about fighters on the entire UFC roster, and he knows it.
Thanks to a UFC contract winning knockout in Dana White’s Contender Series and a colorful personality, the 25-year-old rooster had plenty of eyes on him from the moment he made his debut.
Less than three years later, O’Malley is coming off consecutive knockout victories, including an amazing performance against former WEC champion Eddie Wineland at UFC 250. After that victory, he participated in a round-trip trade with former champion Cody. Garbrandt, who fought on the same card, about who had the most impressive ending. It also sparked the anger of new rooster king Petr Yan, who responded to O’Malley in a heated Twitter exchange before defeating José Aldo to become champion.
It all adds up to a bigger focus, and in a sport where popularity goes a long way in determining career arc, O’Malley truly believes he is the future of this division.
“I’m sure he’s the most mentioned guy in the division,” O’Malley told MMA Fighting. “I’m talking a lot about Petr [Yan], Cody, Henry [Cejudo], all these guys, and they’re all responding. Everyone knows it is a realistic fight in the future. They don’t take it as a joke. They know it is serious business.
“I’m clearly in the head of Petr, or Pete-R, whatever you want to call it. I’m clearly in his head. He is thinking of me. I think he’s dreaming of me, waking up and asking someone to help him tweet something. “
The trashy talk definitely highlights O’Malley, but more than anything, he’s having fun. It may be more personal for the fighters he is targeting, but he said he’s only playing to win, both inside and outside the octagon.
“Nothing is personal,” he said. “These guys say anything, they can do anything, say anything, nothing will be personal. I look at the whole thing, even the tweets from social media, like business. Small, short people like Petr, Cody, and Henry have short man syndrome, and they get mad at things and it’s personal.
“For me, it will always be a business. I think Conor [McGregor] he was very good at it until the Khabib [Nurmagomedov] fight. I feel like that got too personal and played with him. I definitely learned from that experience with Conor vs. Khabib, I can’t let it get personal. I always learn from everyone, especially from men like Chael [Sonnen]Conor, guys who know how to talk and sell fights. “
Beyond the verbal warfare that drew him so much attention, O’Malley seemed ready to take a big step forward in the division after demolishing Wineland at UFC 250. It seemed like there was even interest in a showdown with Garbrandt after scoring a devastating knockout. of yours on the same night.
Later, UFC President Dana White played down that possibility, but O’Malley certainly did not take that as a slight in his abilities or his disposition for top-tier fighters.
Instead, O’Malley argues that he is absolutely ready for the best of the best in bantamweight. But the way he looks at it, there’s a valid reason why he doesn’t compare to Garbrandt or other higher-ranking contenders in the weight class.
“Even Dana White didn’t say she wasn’t ready for Cody,” O’Malley explained. “He acknowledged that, ‘Oh, if he beats Cody, we only have a lot of options, he’s already in the top five, he can only fight four other people.’ I think the UFC wants me active right now. What I take away from that is they don’t want me to limit my opponent options.
“I go out there and knock Cody out in the first round, now I’m potentially fighting a couple of times a year instead of taking these guys. Like, I don’t even think “Chito” [Marlon Vera] is classified. He’s the one I plan to fight in my head, and then I have a ton of options after that. I think it’s smart, from a UFC business point of view, not to give me a guy in the top five, or even a guy in the top 10 right now because it limits the choices of who I can fight next. “
With a scheduled UFC 253 fight against Marlon Vera on August 15, O’Malley is eager for his third victory in 2020 in hopes of staying active until the end of the year.
While his long-term goal involves the bantamweight title, O’Malley understands that will come in time. Now is the time to get as many wins as possible while you are healthy and ready to compete.
“When I’m healthy, like now, I enjoy fighting several times,” he explained. “I am excited to fight in August. That’s what I hear when I hear them say that. It’s not that I’m not ready.
“I think everyone who understands fighting on a technical level understands that I am ready for these superior guys. But they just don’t want to push because then I limit my options against whom I can fight. [But] I have a lot of confidence against anyone in the division. “
Because O’Malley’s career was put on hold for two years, as he dealt with a drug testing problem with the United States Anti-Doping Agency. After it was finally resolved, what mattered most was just fighting.
With enough time, O’Malley knows that he will be coming to Cody Garbrandt and Petr Yan. But there is no rush at this time.
“I got a lot of shit during those two years,” said O’Malley. “People say, ‘Do you even fight more? Why don’t you fight I like to fight, I like to be active. I have over 30 fights, and have been doing this for about 10 years. So I like to be active. “
