Sean O'Malley admits to watching Conor McGregor's footage to generate 'massive fight' feels ahead of 2023 title shot
Sean O'Malley seems to be a huge fan of Conor McGregor as he recently admitted to watching the Irishman's old UFC videos. He feels the promotion currently lacks someone who can bring about a big-fight feel like the Irishman did in his heyday.
During a recent interview with Helen Yee, O'Malley was asked to outline what fans can expect to see him achieve in 2023. The No.1-ranked bantamweight claimed he has been guaranteed a title shot for his next fight and further sees himself as the one to fill McGregor's shoes in the UFC:
"I've been watching, recently, a bunch of old Conor stuff. Like the best moments they have, embeddeds, countdowns and lead-ups. The UFC is missing that 'Conor' feel. The massive fight feel. And I do believe that I'm the next guy to bring that feeling to the people... I miss the giant Conor fights."
Watch O'Malley's interview with Helen Yee below:
The influence that Conor McGregor has on the sport of MMA and the UFC's global popularity cannot be understated. 'Notorious' propelled the UFC to new heights and his rivalry with Khabib Nurmagomedov resulted in the promotion's biggest-ever pay-per-view event at UFC 229 in 2018. The Irish superstar was also a two-division champion and his 13-second knockout against Jose Aldo is still spoken about in revered tones.
Sean O'Malley last defeated Petr Yan via a highly controversial split decision at UFC 280.
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Sean O'Malley weighs in on the legal dispute between Conor McGregor and Artem Lobov
Conor McGregor is currently involved in a legal dispute with his former friend and training partner Artem Lobov. Lobov has taken legal action against the Irishman for cutting him out of the Proper No. Twelve Irish Whiskey deal. The Russian claims to have come up with the idea for the whiskey brand. Things took a turn for the worse when Lobov filed another lawsuit against Conor McGregor for defamation.
Over the past few weeks, 'Notorious' has been active on social media, relentlessly slagging off his former teammate, and there is no indication of either man willing to bury the hatchet.
Read the tweet below:
Conor McGregor continues to lash out at Artem Lobov over their lawsuit. https://t.co/cDR7HBV0FL
However, Sean O'Malley has sided with Conor McGregor on the issue and thinks the Russian owes his professional success to the Irish superstar. In the same interview with Helen Yee, 'Sugar' was asked for his opinion on the ongoing legal battle between the two and stated:
"Off the top of my head... It sucks, I mean, Conor has done so much for Artem and, you know, he [McGregor] was the only reason he [Lobov] was in the UFC and had a name at all. So for Artem to do that is kinda selfish."
Watch the full video below: