Sean O'Malley's questionable rise to title contention

This Saturday, Sean O'Malley will take part in a career-defining fight. He'll face Aljamain Sterling for the bantamweight title in UFC 292's headliner. It will be the culmination of his life's work, and determine whether he'll enter the annals of UFC championship history or fade into obscurity as yet another failed challenger.

Some fans on social media expect a performance reminiscent of Conor McGregor's jaw-dropping knockout of José Aldo from UFC 194. However, there's a key difference between 'The Notorious' and 'Sugar'.

The Irishman's title campaign saw him tear through UFC featherweight division in thrilling fashion. He TKO'd everyone in his path, besides the inhumanly tough Max Holloway.

Sean O'Malley's path to the title, meanwhile, has not been nearly as decisive. Instead, it's been underwhelming at worst, and questionable at best.

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From an unbeaten prospect to the butt of an internet meme

Fans unfamiliar with Sean O'Malley need only catch a glimpse of him to understand why the UFC is convinced of his star potential. He is a flashy knockout artist with a unique striking style, penchant for trash talk, peacocking confidence and kaleidoscopic aesthetic.

In short, he is similar enough to former UFC double champion Conor McGregor to draw attention, complete with an Irish surname. But, he is also unique enough to be recognized as his own man. He is not a carbon copy, but a successor. And his UFC journey began back in 2017.

After building an undefeated record of seven wins, consisting of five finishes and just one decision, Sean O'Malley was given a golden ticket into the UFC in the form of a spot on season one of Dana White's Contender Series. He made no mistake and capitalized on the opportunity as well as anyone ever has.

'Sugar' faced Alfred Khashakyan and showed flashes of brilliance, dropping his foe before knocking him out with a thunderous right hand that blasted the gates of the UFC open. The addition of Snoop Dogg commentating the fight alongside Urijah Faber further elevated the bout, turning 'Sugar' into a viral sensation.

After his win, Sean O'Malley climbed to the top of the cage and echoed his most famous words:

"Welcome to the Sugar Show!"

He was brimming with potential, but was only 22 years old, and while he showed promise, he needed more polish if he hoped to contend with the elites. So he made his promotional debut on The Ultimate Fighter 26 finale, where he locked horns with Terrion Ware.

While a knockout eluded him, he thoroughly outstruck Ware, landing several stinging shots, even scoring several takedowns, one of which included a slick outside trip. The performance earned him a unanimous decision win and kept his undefeated record in pristine condition.

Now 9-0, Sean O'Malley moved on to face Andre Soukhamthath, emerging victorious despite injuring his foot in the third round. It was a performance that highlighted O'Malley's heart. He was more than just flash and natural talent. He had the mental fortitude to persevere when the going got tough.

He won via unanimous decision, but his next two bouts were scrapped after he failed back-to-back drug tests for ostarine, a SARM that yields results similar to steroids. The incidents led to a pair of suspensions that caused 'Sugar' to miss two years of competition.

But after being cleared to return, he did so against José Alberto Quiñónez at UFC 248 and looked completely unaffected by cage rust. Not only did he win, but he was back to his best, TKO'ing his foe in the first round. Then, soon afterward, he squared off with Eddie Wineland at UFC 250.

It was in this fight that O'Malley scored what is arguably his most impressive knockout. Standing in southpaw, he threw a long left hook and left kick to the body. Once the threat of these strikes was implanted in Wineland's mind, O'Malley switched to orthodox and threw a spinning heel kick with his right leg.

While he missed, it didn't matter. When Wineland ducked under it, he failed to notice the change in striking alignment caused by Sean O'Malley's new stance. This, plus the fact that 'Sugar' had baited him with the lead uppercut for the entire fight, made Wineland a sitting duck.

Sean O'Malley faked a lead uppercut, drawing Eddie Wineland's hands low as he sought to block the blow. Instead, 'Sugar' threw a right cross over the top that sent him crashing into the canvas in a walk-off knockout. Now 12-0, it was clear that O'Malley was too good to keep fighting the best of the rest in unranked territory.

So the question remained. Could he style on much better fighters? Upon receiving a No.14 ranking, Sean O'Malley was given the chance to answer that question himself when he faced Marlon 'Chito' Vera. Alas, the bout did not go as the rising bantamweight star had hoped.

Ahead of the bout, he dyed his hair in the colors of the Ecuadorian flag to taunt Vera, who is a native of the South American nation. But come fight night, a low kick from 'Chito' compromised O'Malley's leg with 'foot drop', leaving him unable to fight as he usually does. Before long, he collapsed on the mat, where he was TKO'd.

The loss was bad enough, but O'Malley refusing to acknowledge it, while claiming to be mentally undefeated led to a wave of internet mockery that damaged his reputation.

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Sean O'Malley's rough road to a UFC title shot

After losing his ranking and left with the bitter taste of defeat, Sean O'Malley took nearly a year away from the sport. Eventually, he returned at UFC 260 against an overmatched foe, who is no longer on the UFC roster as of 2023. The future title challenger crossed swords with Thomas Almeida.

At one point, the Brazilian was regarded as a high-potential prospect. Back in 2015, he was an undefeated knockout artist, with a 21-0 record, with 16 knockouts, four submissions and just one decision. But after a brutal first-round knockout loss to future champion Cody Garbrandt, he was never the same.

By 2021, he was 1-4 in his last five fights and had developed a suspect chin. It was more than a winnable fight for O'Malley. Thus, it came as no surprise when 'Sugar' scored a third-round knockout to boot his foe from the UFC with a four-fight losing streak. But it still said nothing of how far O'Malley could go.

Beating a chinny, unranked fighter on a losing streak was not impressive, neither was beating Kris Moutinho, who he next faced. The Portuguese-American was a showcase opponent. While notoriously tough, he was a UFC debutant with a 9-4 record heading into his bout with O'Malley.

He wasn't supposed to win, and he never came close to. Moutinho spent the better part of three rounds playing the role of a glorified punching bag, getting battered and bloodied before referee Herb Dean stepped in to wave the fight off. Sean O'Malley had finished yet another opponent, but still no one noteworthy.

Even his next bout, which was a step up in competition, was questionable. Sean O'Malley took on Raulian Paiva, a then 21-3 fighter. Unfortunately, the Brazilian was unranked, and even worse, a former flyweight who had only recently made his UFC bantamweight debut after having not fought in the weight class in four years.

So when O'Malley dispatched him in the first round with a stunning TKO, no other outcome was expected. Finally, after his win, he was matched up with Pedro Munhoz, a top 10 bantamweight that the UFC hoped was beatable enough for O'Malley to defeat. After all, the Brazilian was 1-4 in his last five fights.

The two men squared off at UFC 276, but 'Sugar' never quite got going. He struggled to find his timing, and by the second round, nothing of note had happened during the bout. It wasn't clear who was ahead on the scorecards. But it turned out that the judges weren't even needed, though for a regrettable reason.

In that second round, O'Malley accidentally poked Munhoz in the eye. The Brazilian suffered a corneal abrasion, which some thought he had faked until he published medical proof of it on social media. The bout ended in a no contest as Munhoz was unable to continue, but O'Malley still celebrated like he'd won.

This did anything but endear him to fans. It seemed that Sean O'Malley was not as good as advertised. Against overmatched foes who can't crack the bantamweight top 15, he looked like a world-beater. But the opposite was true whenever he faced anyone capable of entering the top 10.

So when the UFC announced that he was booked to face former bantamweight champion Petr Yan at UFC 280, hardly anyone gave him a chance. Everyone was convinced that whatever remained of his hype train would go up in flames after 'No Mercy' dealt him a beating everyone regarded as a foregone conclusion.

But come fight night, their bout was far more competitive than anyone could have predicted. In fact, Sean O'Malley consistently outstruck the man that fans once believed to be the best boxer in the UFC. He stunned and rocked Yan on several occasions, forcing the Russian to resort to wrestling.

At the end, 'Sugar's hand was raised in victory, to the surprise of the MMA world. While the bout was highly competitive, it was believed that Yan's wrestling should have earned him the nod. So while O'Malley exceeded expectations, he was again engulfed in controversy.

Now, he is scheduled to take on Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292 in his first-ever UFC title fight.

While his journey to the top has been marred by controversy and questionable moments, Sean O'Malley aims to leave no doubt in anyone's mind by making his win this Saturday as sweet as can be.