It looks like the ‘Suga Show’ will continue for a bit longer, as Dana White Contender Series alumnus, Sean O’Malley, will remain with the UFC for his next eight bouts. O’Malley is a fixture in the bantamweight division, as he is currently the weight class’s No. 1 contender.
O’Malley earned the biggest win of his young career thus far by upsetting Petr Yan, the former UFC bantamweight champion, via a hotly-debated decision at UFC 280 in Abu Dhabi back in Oct. 2022. Despite the criticism of his performance, O’Malley, who has been on the UFC’s radar since 2017, is one of the sport’s most popular fighters, creating his own social media branding and eclipsing nearly three million followers across Instagram and Twitter.
O’Malley also has his podcast, “BroMalley,” where he’ll discuss the latest happenings in his career, the sport of MMA, entertainment gossip, or whatever else is on his mind. The 28-year-old reflected upon what this new deal means for his UFC legacy and what he hopes to achieve in the sport long-term.
“Even if I do fight Aljo next, I don’t get pay-per-view points,” O’Malley said. “That was something I talked about in the negotiations. I tried to get it, you know, pay-per-view points not being the champ, didn’t fly, but I will say I did re-sign with the UFC. A very gracious contract that I’m proud of. I offered that, I asked for this, they said no, they said yes. I said well, they said huh, and I got a number that I’m very happy with. And I truly don’t think any manager that I had could have went in there and got me what I got.”
Quotes transcribed by MMA News.
It has been well-documented that Sean O’Malley (16-1 MMA) is not represented by official management. He believes he is better off doing his negotiations to get the best fights and the most money possible.
It is unclear who O’Malley will fight next, as he has been linked to a title fight against Aljamain Sterling. However, despite Sterling recovering from a bicep injury, the UFC is kicking around the idea of a Henry Cejudo title shot for his first fight back since May 2020.
As of this writing, neither O’Malley nor Sterling have fights booked, but only time will tell.
Who should Sean O’Malley fight next? Let us know your thoughts in the comments, BJPenn Nation!
