’This Is His Conor McGregor vs Jose Aldo Moment” – Dana White Says Sean O’Malley Has to Beat Petr Yan if He Wants to Be a Global Superstar Like Conor McGregor

Dana White has said Sean O’Malley might have a Conor McGregor moment at UFC 280.

Dana White is not one to shy away from making bold statements but some of them can go over and above. In the buildup to the UFC280 Charles Oliveira vs Islam Makhachev, White recently commended ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley. ‘Sugar’ is set to face Petr ‘No Mercy’ Yan in a highly-anticipated bout.

White recently said that this might be the Irish-descent star’s moment to seize superstardom. He compared the upcoming fight to Conor McGregor’s epic 13-second KO win against lightweight GOAT and then reigning champion Jose Aldo.

Did Dana White Give Sean O’Malley a Conor McGregor Moment Hype?

In an interview with Barstool Sports, White referred to O’Malley’s quote about wanting to be the “next Conor McGregor and be a big global superstar.”

He declared that the only way for him to achieve that was through winning key fights.

 This fight for him is like Conor’s Jose Aldo fight,” White said.

However, the UFC president warned O’Malley that it wasn’t going to be an easy task at all.

“O’Malley is 27 years old, he’s 15-1, he’s got the experience for this fight. He’s got all the tools to win this fight. He’s just got to get out there and do it and it’s no easy task. Petr Yan is an absolute savage.”

Anyone who has followed the UFC over the past decade knows about the epic Jose Aldo knockout that propelled McGregor to stardom in an instant.

Even more so, Jose Aldo was and still remains a bona fide MMA lightweight legend but after his loss to McGregor, he never managed to get back into title contention. In fact, Aldo spoke of his loss and later interactions with ‘The Notorious’ in a podcast interview.

How Big is the Petr Yan Fight for ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley?

Petr Yan is a former bantamweight champion with a star-studded rogue’s gallery of opponents. His biggest wins have been over Cory Sandhagen, Jose Aldo, Urijah Faber and John Dodson. He has only lost to current bantamweight champion Aljamain ‘Funk Master’ Sterling.

Even more to his credit, his first loss to Sterling was by disqualification and the second was a close split decision. So, he is a top contender and certainly be up against the winner of the UFC bantamweight title fight between Sterling and TJ Dillashaw also set for UFC 280.

Meanwhile, Sean O’Malley is on his way up to bantamweight title contention. He has only lost once in the UFC to Marlon Vera and holds a record of 15-1-1. His most recent fight against Pedro Munhoz was a no-contest because of an accidental eye poke.

However, he has wins over several UFC bantamweight contenders and the Yan fight might propel him to the top. White was quick to say, “He’s [O’Malley] just got to get out there and do it. It’s no easy task. Petr Yan is an absolute savage.”

ALSO READ: “I honestly think that I’m better than Petr” – Sean O’Malley anticipates Petr Yan will lose At UFC 280