When I ask about how differently he handles high-profile now compared to when he was younger, he keenly points out that every single one of his fights have come on main cards, more often than not on major pay-per-views (the lone exception being his win over Jose Quinonez at UFC 248, which came after two years out of competition. It was, however, the “featured prelim” that night). It’s that experience which informs his fluid ease.
“I’m not nervous,” O’Malley said. “I’m not trying to say the right thing. I can just say whatever comes to mind and be authentic.”
For all the hubbub about who he has and hasn’t fought, O’Malley hasn’t shied from calling out the bigger names in the division, at least publicly.
Ironically, three of the names O’Malley has thrown out there are also fighting on December 11: Dominick Cruz, Pedro Munhoz (who are fighting each other) and Cody Garbrandt (who is making his flyweight debut versus Kai Kara-France. Slyly, he points out that those perennial contenders and established names each make the walk earlier in the night than himself.
“I just think they’re all interesting matchups,” he said. “I think they’re all good fights that the fans would like to see. People want to see me fight someone that they know, not necessarily ranked. I’m not calling them out to be ranked. I’m calling them out because they’re interesting fights. They’re on the prelims. They gotta do something cool, something good, something big.”
For now, O’Malley is just going to keep fighting who is given to him and continue to polarize fight fans regarding his ceiling. What’s undeniable is the fact that we’ll all be watching, and O’Malley knows exactly what he can do with all eyes on him.
“I’m obviously not ranked,” O’Malley said. “It’s funny because it makes people so angry. I’m making money and doing my thing.”
