Conor McGregor Eyed By Sean O'Malley; UFC Bantamweight Champ Open to 155-Pound Fight

UFC bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley is eyeing a fight against the biggest star in the company.

Per ESPN's Andreas Hale, O'Malley said during an appearance on the Raw Talk podcast that he'd move up from 135 pounds to 155 pounds for a chance to face former two-division champion Conor McGregor.

"Conor's one of the only guys I would fight that I'm like, 'That motherf---er's big,'" O'Malley said. "I would just fight him at 155. First of all, it's a huge payday. Second of all, it's Conor. That would be legendary. So, he's one of the rare guys I would fight that are way out of my weight class."

McGregor is set to return to the Octagon for the first time in almost three years at UFC 303 on June 29 against Michael Chandler. UFC president Dana White said during the fight announcement at UFC 300 that the fight will be a welterweight bout at 170 pounds.

The Irishman broke into the UFC as a member of the featherweight division and eventually claimed the 145-pound title before moving up to lightweight and becoming the first fighter in UFC history to hold two championships simultaneously. He fought three times at 170 pounds in the UFC, splitting a pair of bouts in 2016 against former rival Nate Diaz and defeating Donald Cerrone in 2020.

McGregor's influence on O'Malley is no secret. The 29-year-old has used a similar method to build himself into one of the top stars in the UFC today, and he believes his longtime idol is envious of his growing popularity.

"To be honest, I kind of want to hate him," O'Malley said. "I do think there was a lot of jealousy. People like that, that big of an ego, he sees what's happening. He sees he's starting to get pushed out. I'm starting to come up."

McGregor recently named O'Malley in a now-deleted social media rant directed toward Ryan Garcia after the boxer tested positive for the banned substance ostarine in his win last month over Devin Haney. O'Malley tested positive for the same substance in 2019 and received a six-month suspension from USADA.

"There's no other reason for him to talk s--- about me," O'Malley said. "I've never said anything but praised him. You know, I've looked up to him, so I want to try to hate him, but it's hard."

A fight between O'Malley and McGregor will be fun for fans to dream about, but it will likely be quite some time before they ever meet in the Octagon. O'Malley is expected to defend his title against top bantamweight contender Merab Dvalishvili later this year.