Attempting to become a multiple-time bantamweight champion tonight at UFC 316, Sean O’Malley has boldly claimed he likely has multiple personality disorder. Those personalities swing between himself and two versions of ‘Suga’ Sean.
O’Malley, who headlines tonight’s return to New Jersey for the promotion, will lock horns with Merab Dvalishvili. The target would be to avenge a prior decision loss to the Georgian.
O’Malley lost his title to Dvalishvili at UFC 306. The defeat marked just his second in combat sports.
But appearing to be zoned in on his return tonight in a bid to avenge another defeat as he takes on Dvalishvili, O’Malley has cut out a whole host of distractions ahead of his headliner at the Prudential Center.
According to O’Malley, it seems this new version of him is part of a multitude of personalities he can offer at any time.
Speaking with Nina Drama ahead of his fight, O’Malley claimed he can turn on his ‘Suga’ persona at any time. To boot, there are actually two versions of that personality, a pre-fight one and the ‘Suga’ who actually enters the Octagon come fight night.
“There’s three of me, okay. Wait, so there’s Suga the performer, Suga the fighter, performer athlete, Suga the character. We all have an alter ego, a little bit; we all have that person we’re trying to keep in. Maybe I do have multiple personalities,” O’Malley explained.
But as mentioned earlier, O’Malley seems more focused, almost, and even prepared for his return against Dvalishvili. To boot, according to color-caller Daniel Cormier, O’Malley has taken on a new sort of identity pre-UFC 316.
Daniel Cormier labels Sean O’Malley as measured before UFC 316
Set to call the action tonight alongside both Jon Anik and veteran color commentator Joe Rogan, Cormier spoke openly of O’Malley’s chances of success against the dominant Dvalishvili in ‘The Garden State’.
And as far as he can see, Cormier is projecting a much more “measured” figure ahead of UFC 316. To boot, in what he claims is a pivotal pairing for his immediate future as a top draw amongst the minds of UFC brass.
“You see Sean O’Malley, and he’s much more measured,” Cormier told ESPN. “And he’s much more calm and patient today. For him to go back to that superstar level, he’s first off got to just win. The only time we have seen him struggle in that manner was against the champion, Merab Dvalishvili. And he looks so good against ‘Chito’ [Marlon Vera]. And he looks so good against Aljamain [Sterling].”
O’Malley lost to Dvalishvili while nursing a hip injury. While he could have easily chosen to drop out of the fight, Cormier finds a reason why he chose not to. The former UFC Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight Champion opines that O’Malley was looking to internalize the personalities of the likes of Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather and fetch record gate receipts.
