Sean O’Malley is ready to test his skills against former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt but doubts the fight happens.
O’Malley (12-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) and Garbrandt (12-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) shared the UFC 250 card, with both men delivering walk-off knockouts in their fights. O’Malley, 25, starched veteran Eddie Wineland for his biggest win to date, while Garbrandt, 28, snapped a three-fight losing streak with a buzzer-beater knockout over Raphael Assuncao.
The highlight-reel finishes left fans marveling at the possibility of a matchup between Garbrandt and O’Malley, but O’Malley doesn’t think it would be a smart idea for the former champion to fight him.
“There is no way that he takes that fight,” O’Malley told ESPN. “There’s no way he takes that fight. It’s a lose-lose for him. One, he’s probably going to get knocked out. And two, he’s fighting someone that has a lot of hype, but if he beats me people will say, ‘Oh, but he’ … it’s a lose-lose for him, I feel like, so I’m sure they would avoid that fight.”
As for how how that fight would look, should it happen?
“One hundred percent I feel like I’d knock Cody out,” O’Malley said. “I mean, he looked more improved Saturday for sure. He looked like he was more calculated, more calm. He looked very much improved from his previous fights getting knocked out three times, so he did improve. I think he is high level. He’s a very, very dangerous opponent. Anyone that just throws bombs like that is dangerous, but I feel like I’m calculated enough, accurate enough and skill-wise enough to be able to knock him out, so that’s a win-win fight for me.”
Undefeated O’Malley is undoubtedly one of the fast rising stars in the UFC as he continues to level up with each performance. After his finish over Wineland, O’Malley discussed his desire to compete in a main event, as well as earn a bump up in pay, which he will negotiate himself due to his choice to no longer have a manager.
Sean O'Malley confident he'd knock out Cody Garbrandt, but 'there’s no way he takes that fight'