"I was the main event that night" - Sean O'Malley claims UFC 264 belonged to him
Sean O'Malley is highly regarded as one of, if not the most, proficient strikers in the UFC. Proving his mettle during his UFC 264 scrap against Kris Moutinho, 'Sugar' consolidated his position as a fan favorite prospect. What's more, he's now claimed that it was his performance that outshone every other fight that night.
While in conversation with Ariel Helwani on the latest edition of The MMA Hour, Sean O'Malley opened up about the performance he put in at the July pay-per-view. The 26-year-old talked about a potential big-money contract with the UFC after his current deal runs out.
He declared that he was one of the biggest attractions on the UFC 264 card and deserved a big paycheck. Having consistently performed well across multiple events, Sean O'Malley went as far as to say that he single-handedly saved UFC 264, with Conor McGregor suffering a freak injury in the main event.
"They might think I'm not worth half-a-million or whatever the number is. I've been on like five pay-per-views, you can't tell me I'm not. You can't tell me UFC 264 wasn't the 'Sugar Show'. With how that all ended after Conor hurt his foot, I was the main event that night," exclaimed Sean O'Malley.
Catch Sean O'Malley's appearance on The MMA Hour below:
What's next for Sean O'Malley?
Following a massive debut outing against Luigi Vendramini, Paddy Pimblett trained his aim at Sean O'Malley. Although 'Sugar' and Pimblett fight in different weight classes, O'Malley has not held back from feeding the fire.
The Liverpudlian took a shot at the bantamweight's ground game and grappling. However, Sean O'Malley hit back, dismissing the misconception that he can't handle himself on the canvas.
O'Malley recently offered his two cents on how Paddy Pimblett would fare against ranked fighters. And it was not something 'The Baddy' would have loved to hear. He went on to claim that Pimblett's promotional debut left something to be desired.
Unimpressed with Pimblett's performance, Sean O'Malley suggested that it'll be a long time before he's adjudged to be one of the better fighters in the promotion.
While a fight between Paddy Pimblett and Sean O'Malley is nowhere near on the table just yet, we'd be lying if we said it wouldn't turn out to be a gripping matchup.