UFC veteran Chael Sonnen was recently in quite a disruptive mood. He made some bold claims about some of the top contenders in the sport. Count in Sean O’Malley and Conor McGregor. Sonnen declared Sean O’Malley as the “biggest star” in MMA. Here is what happened:
Chael Sonnen recently sat down for another video on his YouTube channel. There he declared the bantamweight champion to be the biggest star in the sport. That would mean ‘Suga’ surpassed even Conor McGregor, whom many still consider to be the face of the sport. However, the former UFC icon had good reasons to make this bold statement.
O’Malley is the biggest star in our sport right now. And ‘Red Panty Night’ is still real. Conor’s not in the sport, he’s not even licensed. Conor could not walk in and fight tonight if he wanted to.
Chael Sonnen on his YouTube channel
Sonnen made these comments in light of O’Malley’s rising popularity and recent success. Especially, after he won the UFC bantamweight title by knocking out Aljamain Sterling. Sonnen noted that while McGregor remains a huge name, he hasn’t fought since 2021. Therefore, his involvement in the sport has waned. Sonnen said that the Irishman has no more of a claim to the sport right now than retired icons like Georges St-Pierre or Khabib Nurmagomedov.
In contrast, O’Malley is currently active, drawing significant attention both inside and outside the octagon. Sonnen emphasized that O’Malley’s growing stardom is not just due to his performances in the cage but also his charisma and work ethic outside of it. All of these together have positioned him as a leading figure in the sport today.
Netizens react to Chael Sonnen declaring Sean O’Malley as the ‘biggest star’ in MMA
Chael Sonnen’s comments about the bold claim of ‘Suga’ being a bigger star than ‘The Notorious’ have shocked the internet. People went to the comment section to share their views and opinions on the subject. Here are some of the reactions from X:
Netizens react to Chael Sonnen’s comments on Sean O’Malley (Image via Imago)Biggest arms in WestLin and Dana’s favorite mouthpiece
— Zondo🛡 (@Sphamandlaz2) September 2, 2024
He couldn’t sell out Noche UFC at the Sphere lol 😂
— Nikhil 20 11 84 (@Nikhil2011841) September 2, 2024
That’s why they’re reducing prices for his Main event. Okkkk
— Johan (@enradso17) September 2, 2024
Yeah, so that isn’t what he said. He said he’s the biggest star BECAUSE he doesn’t currently consider Conor an active fighter.
— Dshaf (@sshaf91) September 2, 2024
There was a Conor in the UFC between 2013 and the Aldo fight in 2015 which was something to behold.
Everything post Aldo was hype.
.500 fighter for the last 9 years and no one he beat in that time frame had a winning record moving forward
— vigorish mma (@VigorishMMA) September 2, 2024
Just due to Mcgregor’s inactivity this is probably true at the moment. If mcgregor does fight Chandler, ideally before the year is out, then he probably takes the crown again
— Buffalo Sparty (@Sparty_VZ) September 2, 2024
Has he ever cracked a mill ppv buys? We all know Chael just hates on Conor so this don’t mean shit
— Cisco Rodriguez (@ent970) September 2, 2024
PPV numbers are not quite the same for these 2 “stars”
— Oliver (@OliverHasDoubts) September 2, 2024
People on the internet had some interesting reactions to Sonnen’s comments. Some agreed with the UFC veteran, citing McGregor’s long-drawn inactivity. Others pointed to ‘The Notorious’s sky-high PPV numbers. It is important to note that Conor McGregor is still ahead in terms of overall PPV sales compared to Sean O’Malley. McGregor’s star power, especially from events like UFC 229 against Khabib Nurmagomedov and UFC 264 against Dustin Poirier, has set records that O’Malley has not yet matched.
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