- Sean O’Malley explains how this fight with Petr Yan came about.
- O’Malley shares what he expects from the fight with Yan.
Sean O’Malley is headed into the biggest fight of his career, he will be taking on number one ranked Petr Yan in October. The fight is being discussed as a possible title contention fight, but in the aftermath of the booking, many people are being skeptical of O’Malley’s skill set and capability of taking on the former champion.
In recent years O’Malley has been one of the fastest-growing fighters in terms of fandom. He is a fan favorite whose looks and attitude may have accelerated his rise up the division. Since his UFC debut in 2017, O’Malley has had a great record, however, the only two ranked fights he had ended in a loss and a no contest. This lack of top competition has led to the doubt that O’Malley can compete with the top-ranked bantamweights. O’Malley has responded to these doubts and claims he has paid his dues.
“I’ve been calling for this fight for a while, obviously I kind of knew I wasn’t going to get the fight a couple years ago because you know, I had built up all these knockouts, build up enough hype. I’ve earned over this. I’ve earned my spot to fight someone in the top five I’d say by, in my eyes, beating Pedro Munoz and being the biggest name in the bantamweight division,” O’Malley said on the Believe You Me podcast.
Sean O’Malley knows he belongs in the cage with Petr Yan and knows what to expect when he gets there
This bout will be taking place in Abu Dhabi on one of the biggest cards of the year. Also on this card is a bantamweight title fight between champion Aljamain Sterling and former champ, TJ Dillashaw. O’Malley is unsure if he will get a title shot off of a win that night since there are other possible title contenders, but he knows what to expect out of his opponent at least. He plans on showing the world that he can beat Yan and that he is the best striker in the division.
“I’d think this fight is gonna be a sweet kickboxing match,” O’Malley said. “Peter says he’s a master of boxing I believe I have the best MMA striker in the UFC. So I do believe it will be a very interesting high-level kickboxing match.”
If O’Malley can get passed Yan, he would make a great case for a shot at the title. In the mix for a possible shot at gold along with Yan and O’Malley are, Dominick Cruz and Marlon Vera, who fight this weekend, and Jose Aldo and Merab Dvalishvili who will face off in a week.
