When all is said and done in his career, UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O’Malley wants to be part of a conversation that Conor McGregor is not.
Comparisons have long been made between the surging O’Malley and McGregor, the sport’s unrivaled biggest superstar who became the first two-division champion during his prime years in the cage.
While “Sugar” remains in pursuit of the Irishman’s stardom and legacy, he expects to close the gap in a big way and perhaps even replace him as the UFC’s top-drawing name with an emphatic title defense this weekend.
After recording his first successful retention at the expense of Marlon Vera this past March, O’Malley is next tasked with stalling the championship ambitions of Merab Dvalishvili in the main event of Noche UFC 306 at the Sphere.
O’Malley has long suggested he has what it takes to replicate the feats of McGregor, his longtime idol. But when his career is concluded, “Sugar” wants to go above and beyond the Dubliner by securing a place in a coveted discussion.
O’Malley Targets GOAT Status, Something McGregor Isn’t In The Running For
During an interview with ESPN, O’Malley looked ahead to his second assignment of the year to date, which sees him top the lineup for the promotion’s second annual celebration of Mexican Independence Day.
As always, an O’Malley fight week has brought up McGregor as a topic, given the parallels many have drawn between their careers and social media presence.
The bantamweight champ, though, insists there’s a major difference in what he’s attempting to achieve in the sport of MMA as compared to the legacy left behind by the inactive Irishman.
“Who brought the most excitement to fights? Conor McGregor, 100 percent,” O’Malley said. “He’s a dork, but it’s the truth. But no one thinks Conor is the greatest of all time. Greatest fighter of all time is Jon Jones, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Islam Makhachev is up there. I’m trying to be both. I’m three fights away from being considered one of the greatest of all time and one of the most exciting of all time. There’s a difference in what I’m trying to do.”
O’Malley will plan on taking a big step closer to joining the likes of Jones and Georges St-Pierre in GOAT talk when he takes to the cage inside the Sphere on Saturday, Sept. 14.
And beyond this weekend’s clash, “Sugar” has long teased a venture up to featherweight in pursuit of ‘champ-champ’ status. Such an accomplishment would no doubt increase his chances of reaching his lofty ambitions on the sport’s biggest stage.
