[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] sees [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] as a big UFC star.
O’Malley (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) claimed the bantamweight title by dethroning Aljamain Sterling (23-4 MMA, 15-4 UFC) with a second-round TKO this past Saturday at UFC 292.
With his style, personality and fashion sense, “The Sugar Show” has stood out from most fighters – and he’s been producing the results in the octagon. Sonnen praised O’Malley for his rise, and likes Teddy Atlas’ comparison to UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
“There was a show called ‘American Idol’ years ago, and there was this British guy that was a jerk called Simon Cowell, and he came out and told the world that some people have the ‘it-factor,’ and that term has stuck around ever since the guy said it,” Sonnen said during a Q&A held last Friday at TD Garden. “We know what that means, right? And Sean O’Malley has the it-factor. Plus he’s pulling this new gimmick, it’s not just with the hair.
“Now he’s going places without his shirt on, or if he gets there and he has his shirt on he takes his shirt off. It’s funny. The guy is good. It’s those simple little things that go a long way. I worked with Teddy Atlas this morning, and he made a comparison not to Conor McGregor, he made a comparison with Sean O’Malley to Israel Adesanya that I thought was very interesting. I didn’t think about it once Teddy said it, but after he said it, I get that comparison. Yeah, man, his star is on the rise.”
Daniel Cormier compared O’Malley’s rise to Conor McGregor‘s, even though O’Malley doesn’t think he’s reached that level yet.
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.