Sean O'Malley claims he can overtake Conor McGregor's spot as biggest MMA star: "I'm the number one"
Sean O'Malley recently weighed in on his current star power and claimed that he believes he can overtake Conor McGregor's spot as the biggest star in MMA. He noted that the Irishman's octagon return will be very telling and could expedite that process.
'Suga' is the reigning bantamweight champion and is set to headline Noche UFC 306 this Saturday, which will be the highest gate in the promotion's history. 'The Notorious', on the other hand, is currently awaiting the date for his octagon return and hasn't fought since 2021 when he suffered a gruesome injury against Dustin Poirier.
During his pre-fight media availability ahead of Noche UFC 306, 'Suga' answered whether he is on the former two-division champion's level of star power. O'Malley mentioned he believes that he is not too far behind 'The Notorious' in terms of star power and claims that he could realistically overtake McGregor's spot should he lose on his return:
"I think I'm very close. I think Conor [McGregor] still got one more big fight in him cause there's a big question mark like, can Conor come back? Can he actually beat [Michael] Chandler?...If he goes out there and loses his next fight...Like, it's gotta die down eventually. Maybe not. That just tests how big of a star he is, but I would assume he goes out there, if he loses, I'm there. I'm the guy. I'm the number one."
Check out Sean O'Malley's comments below:
Sean O'Malley discusses how he stacks up against Conor McGregor's appeal
In addition to claiming he could overtake Conor McGregor's spot as the top star in MMA, Sean O'Malley discussed how he stacks up to the Irishman.
During the aforementioned clip, O'Malley complimented McGregor on his mic work and performances but mentioned that he has been a more active than the former two-division UFC champion:
"I bring fights. I fight often, so I think that's what it is right now. Conor [McGregor] was good on the mic. The accent, the words that he chose...he had a couple good performances. But I'm just consistent right now, I'm fighting a lot, so that's what I bring."
Check out highlights from Sean O'Malley's UFC bantamweight championship win below: