Sean O’Malley emerged as the bantamweight champion at UFC 292 earlier this Saturday by dethroning the long-reigning champion Aljamain Sterling with a technical knockout in the 51st second of the second round.
O’Malley has been a star long before he actually became the champ through his on and off-the-octagon antics as well as his trash-talking skills which has led many to compare him with the ‘Notorious’ Conor McGregor.
Daniel Cormier points out similarities between Sean O’Malley and Conor McGregor
Ex Mixed martial artist Daniel Cormier believes that Sean O’Malley”s title-winning performance is very similar to that of Conor McGregor’s.
“I talked to Sean about what the perfect night looks like, What does Saturday night look like, Sean? What is ideal for you? How does your story come to a conclusion this weekend?’ He said, ‘I’m going to knock him out.” Daniel said on his YouTube channel.
Daniel Cormier sees parallels between Sean O'Malley and Conor McGregor's rise to the top.
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“He is almost the second coming of Conor, and when I say the second coming of McGregor, that’s a really good thing. He should not fight those comparisons,” Cormier added.
“And it’s hard to envision that when you talk about a guy like Aljamain Sterling… Sean O’Malley did it with a punch tonight. He was able expertly slide out of range, land a right hand that ended the night of the former champion. This place was on fire for this kid. He is, no bullshit, he is almost the second coming of McGregor.”
Who will be Sean O’Malley’s next opponent?
As the new UFC bantamweight champion, after defeating Sterling (23-4-0), Sean went on to call out Ecuador’s Marlon “Chito” Vera (21-8-1) for a highly-anticipated rematch. The two 135lbers share a rather intense rivalry and O’Malley probably wants to close the lid on the chapter.
On August 15, 2022, at UFC 252, Sean O’Malley suffered the first and only loss of his career. Vera defeated Sean O’Malley by landing some brutal elbows to force a stoppage in the first round. O’Malley had things going for him initially with some solid leg and body kicks but his leg injury was the turning point in the battle. Vera finished the fight with elbows from on top, taking advantage of O’Malley’s weakness.
Before a potential fight with Dvalishvili, O’Malley seems to want another shot against Vera. Instead of turning his attention to Sterling’s teammate, his post-fight comments to Joe Rogan were directly aimed at the Ecuadorian. Aside from Vera, other challengers like Merab Dvalishvili, Henry Cejudo, and Cory Sandhagen await their shot at the title.
Who do you want to see Sean fight next? Share with us in the comments!
