It goes without saying, but sometimes it is easy to forget: a fighter is nothing without his team. And the partnership of Sean O’Malley and his coach, Tim Welch, is no exception.
The colorful former UFC Bantamweight Champion is one of the most marketable stars of the promotion, having found success both inside and outside of the Octagon. With an 18-2 MMA record and a huge online following, O’Malley’s career has gone from strength to strength.
But having renewed his focus and reset his personal life in the aftermath of his UFC 306 title loss to Merab Dvalishvili, much of the attention has shifted to his coach, Tim Welch. Alongside his usual duties, Welch has taken on a new responsibility. That is to pick up the pieces of a broken O’Malley and put them back together again.
The drastic alterations to O’Malley’s lifestyle have emphasized mentality over physicality. Abstaining from video games and smoking weed has helped O’Malley improve his psychological strength. Crucially, his podcast co-host, coach, and most importantly, long-time friend, Tim Welch, has helped him stay motivated as they hone in on UFC 316.
Welch’s association with ‘Suga’ goes back to his early career. Having moved to Arizona, home of the MMA Lab where the American fighter now trains, O’Malley first saw Welch when he was fighting in Bellator. O’Malley was shocked to learn that Welch was also from the state of Montana.
While Welch never made it to the UFC as a fighter, he did finish up his MMA career with a 15-6 record. His experiences as a fighter have also proved positive in his transition into coaching, as shown by O’Malley’s success.
Their paths crossed for the first time at an event in Great Falls, Montana, where O’Malley impressed Welch with an armbar submission. Welch was on commentary at the time. He invited O’Malley to train at the MMA Lab for a week, sleeping on Welch’s sofa during the trial. The rest is history.
Sean O’Malley: I have all the faith in the world in Tim Welch
While Tim Welch has been at the center of Sean O’Malley’s success, he is arguably proving his worth more than ever as they rebuild and regroup ahead of the UFC 316 main event.
As previously noted, there has been a renewed emphasis on the mental resoluteness of O’Malley. That has included a revamp in the training approach. Welch is utilizing unique methods to help bridge the gap between the training regime and the realities of a Fight Night.
As shared by Red Corner MMA on X, Welch and ‘Suga’ have tried to tap into that supreme mental mindset. That is achieved through recreating a real fight atmosphere in O’Malley’s gym. This included a locker room walkout with entrance music, piped-in crowd noise, and a fight with a sparring partner, who left with a bloody nose.
Sean O’Malley recreated a real fight atmosphere in his gym — from the locker room walkout to the entrance, the fight itself, and even the crowd noise. In the middle of it all, he ended up making his sparring partner’s nose bleed.
@SugaSeanMMA pic.twitter.com/kMR0awdnt6
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) June 3, 2025
Speaking about the changes to the fight preparations, O’Malley was quick to praise his long-time coach. He also talked about the confidence his methods have instilled in him.
“I think Tim is one of the best coaches in the world,” said O’Malley in the UFC 316 Countdown episode. “I put a lot of trust in him to help me design a good fight camp. And this camp’s been great. I’ve been able to get the good rounds in and I couldn’t do that last camp… It’s going to be a completely different fight.”
As Welch admits openly, Dvalishvili is arguably the best bantamweight fighter in UFC history. But the change in approach, mentality, and discipline from O’Malley marks him out as a very different fighter from the one who entered the Octagon at UFC 306, nine months ago.
Dvalishvili may still be the favorite, but with Welch firmly in his corner, O’Malley is not by any means a walking deadman.
