Sean O'Malley explains how he can demolish Ryan Garcia any way he wants in potential MMA fight
Sean O'Malley will attempt to defend his bantamweight title for the first time this weekend when he faces Marlon 'Chito' Vera at UFC 299. 'Sugar' recently weighed in on the outcome of a matchup with Ryan Garcia, following the latter's comments expressing an interest in facing him in a mixed martial arts bout.
Speaking to Patrick Bet-David and Vincent Oshana of the PBD Podcast, the bantamweight champion was asked how he believes a meeting in the octagon would turn out, responding:
"It depends what you want to see. You want me to choke him? You want me to knock him out? You want me to kick his legs? What do you want me to do? I'll do whatever you want. I can do anything to him... I would talk to the team. I would say, 'Hey boys, do you want me to knock him out or submit him?' I'd let people pick. I'd try to do some polls and say, 'Do you guys want me to knock him out with my left hand, my left foot?' I'd probably do some games and figure it out."
O'Malley was then asked how long he believed a finish would take. He responded:
"I think the fastest way to victory then would be to probably choke him. I probably could choke him in a couple minutes. That's being humble."
Check out Sean O'Malley's comments on facing Ryan Garcia in mixed martial arts below:
O'Malley added that he does not envision a Jorge Masvidal-style knockout, acknowledging that 'Gamebred's' five-second knockout of Ben Askren at UFC 239 is very rare. He claimed that a boxing match between him and Garcia would be far more competitive and while he would not be favored, he believes he would win. 'Suga' acknowledged, however, that it would be a difficult challenge.
What did Ryan Garcia say about facing Sean O'Malley?
Sean O'Malley has expressed interest in a high-profile boxing match, listing Gervonta Davis, Devin Haney, and Ryan Garcia as opponents he would like to face. 'KingRy' revealed that he would rather face 'Suga' in a mixed martial arts bout during a recent appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, stating:
"I'll beat his a** in MMA, guaranteed. I'm a natural, you don't understand, I'm a natural wrestler. I just beat my security that's a wrestler. I beat him. I'm strong and I got crazy conditioning... I know I'm going to knock him out in boxing. That's not even fair."
He continued:
"What is fair is to test myself in MMA because I know if I put my mind to it and I trained everyday and I had Nate [Diaz] helping me, even Alex Pereira, all of them and I really locked in, he will not beat me. I will come with everything I have and I will destory Sean O'Malley. In the UFC. I've already sent text messages to Dana [White]... I'll come to the UFC. Pay me a bag, I'm there. I'm down to do it after I beat Haney."
Check out Ryan Garcia's comments on facing Sean O'Malley in the UFC below:
It is unclear if Garcia and O'Malley will clash, whether it be in mixed martial arts or boxing. While they have exchanged words, it is unclear if UFC President and CEO Dana White would be willing to co-promote such a bout with friend-turned-foe Oscar De La Hoya, who serves as Garcia's promoter.