When Sean O’Malley was cutting his teeth in the UFC, he looked to emulate the biggest star in the history of the sport.
O’Malley first introduced himself to the fans on Dana White’s Contender Series with an impressive performance that had the UFC president convinced that he could be something special.
‘Suga’ went on to follow that up with back-to-back wins inside the Octagon, beating Terrion Ware and Andre Soukhamthath to find his feet in the bantamweight division.
Today, O’Malley is one of the biggest stars on the roster as he prepares to headline UFC 316 in a rematch with 135 pound champion Merab Dvalishvili.
During his UFC ascent, a lot of comparisons were drawn between O’Malley and Conor McGregor with their relationship now seemingly healed following some critical comments that were exchanged in the past.
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Sean O’Malley would watch Conor McGregor’s fights before heading to the arena for his early UFC outings
Conor McGregor recently weighed in on Sean O’Malley studying his old fights but this certainly isn’t the first time that ‘Suga’ has looked to learn from ‘The Notorious’.
Back in June of 2018, the then 9-0 rising star made his first appearance on Joe Rogan’s ‘JRE MMA Show’ where they touched on various topics.
O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch, spoke during the episode about how the composure of the exciting striker is one of the reasons why he’s so dangerous.
Welch revealed that in order to try and get in that zone, they would watch videos of McGregor’s UFC fights where he would also be incredibly calm and calculated inside the Octagon.
“Before that last fight against Andre [Soukhamthath], we watched probably four of Conor’s fights right before we walked to the arena and ‘Suga’ is sitting there, zoning in on those fights. Watching the way he walks out, watching the way he’s good with his energy, smart with his energy, and you can really see it in the fight, the way he mimics them. ‘Suga’ can watch someone do something and he can do it right away. It’s a really cool talent.”
O’Malley seconded this, speaking about his admiration for McGregor and what he’s specifically looking at when he’s going back to watch the Irishman’s previous bouts.
“Yeah, before the last couple fights, before we go to the arena, we just throw on [UFC] Fight Pass, watch Conor. Watch him walk out, watch his body language and Conor, he’s the man. I love Conor, I’ve always loved Conor. I remember watching his first fight in the UFC like, ‘That dude’s gonna be good.'”
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Conor McGregor previously offered to train with Sean O’Malley and Tim Welch
Following the tensions that existed between them for a short time following some scathing exchanges, Sean O’Malley and Conor McGregor patched things up.
After O’Malley admitted that ‘The Notorious’ will always have played an important role in his career, the Irishman extended an olive branch.
McGregor wrote on X last October that he hoped that ‘Suga’ and Tim Welch would spend some time training in Ireland under his coach, John Kavanagh.
“I am telling you he would regain his title. He has a shot at regaining it still for sure, but for himself, and also his coach to spend a good month, to begin with, not a long time, but a good solid month under coach Kav at SBG. They would take heaps of knowledge back with them and onward to regain the Gold. I would love to see it!”