At UFC 280, Sean O’Malley will face by far the biggest test of his career when he takes on former bantamweight champion Peter Yan in a main card bout.
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It’s a huge step up in competition for O’Malley, but he believes he has very few downsides and could potentially make him a transcendent star in the sport.
On The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, O’Malley remarked, “It’s difficult not to see it that way. I defiantly don’t want to go into this fight thinking that the winner would be the guy I lose to. But I only think that producing these stirring, wonderful moments is how real superstars are produced. The 22nd of October in Abu Dhabi is a major date, therefore I’m going there and starching Peter Yan. Superstars are created in this manner, and I believe that this is my career’s ideal fight. Perfect moment and ideal foe. Simply said, I have to go there now.
“I am thrilled about this chance and am confident that I will seize it. And I believe that you will improve as “Suga” when we fight with the males at higher levels. I couldn’t show my true MMA skills in the Octagon. I really thought Pedro [Munhoz] was going to be the one to get it out of me. It wasn’t, obviously. That’s how it turned out, but I think Petr is the guy to see how good I am.”
The interview: MMA Hour with Sean O’Malley
O’Malley is already one of the most well-liked young fighters in the UFC, but he hasn’t yet achieved the kind of cage success that would match his fame. When “Suga” fought Pedro Munhoz at UFC 276 earlier this month, he had a chance to enter the top 10, but O’Malley’s eye poke caused the bout to terminate in a no-contest. Given that, some spectators were taken aback by the matchup, and UFC President Dana White even confesses that he first believed the matchup was a horrible idea before matchmaker Sean Shelby persuaded him differently.
“As soon as I put Peter on the canvas, Dana’s like, ‘Okay, that was a good fight,'” O’Malley said. “Regardless, I know for a fact that me versus Petr is an epic battle. It’s a sweet, sweet kickboxing match if I had to guess. Two very high level strikers, two very high level MMA fighters. It will be a very interesting fight and I believe I have what it takes to knock Peter’s lights out.”
While O’Malley has a lot to gain from this match, Yan finds himself in the opposite situation. The former bantamweight champion lost to Aljamain Sterling for the title at UFC 273 and is currently ranked No. 2 in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, where O’Malley is not ranked.
That’s a big risk for Yan, and O’Malley said he’s not sure “No Mercy” would care. But he thinks Yan eventually recognized him as more important than the ranking might suggest.
Sean O’Malley on fighting against Petr Yann at UFC 280
“It’s a risky fight for Peter. he is not stupid Well, maybe it is. He’s a high-level boxer, he’s a high-level MMA fighter, he’s got to look at me and know that I have legitimate ability. I’m not really in the ‘Top-10’ but in his mind I think a win over me is a huge win. Even though Chito supposedly ‘beat’ me, he fought, he fought Jose Aldo, who was just coming off a title fight. So winning over me is nothing. I’m the biggest name in the bantamweight division, I’m one of the biggest names in the UFC, so I guess in those circumstances I’m not surprised that he took the fight. Stylistically, we’ll see how it goes on October 22.”
UFC 280 takes place on October 22 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
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