Sean O’Malley: UFC White House ‘doesn’t seem as big’ as previous fights

Former UFC bantamweight champ Sean O’Malley is no stranger to big fights. Some would say his next fight will be his biggest to date — but that’s not the way he sees it.

O’Malley is set to return to action as part of the much-discussed UFC White House card, which goes down on June 14 — Donald Trump’s birthday. His opponent will be rising contender Aiemann Zahabi. It will be the third fight from the top of the bill, before the two title fights that are set to headline.

Speaking on his YouTube channel in the lead-up to the fight, O’Malley opened up on how he’s feeling about the upcoming challenge. He made no secret of the fact that it doesn’t feel as big as some of his previous title fights, notably his title win over Aljamain Sterling, and his title defense against Marlon “Chito” Vera.

Sean O’Malley compares UFC White House matchup to past fights

“I feel like the Aljo fight felt so big,” O’Malley said. “The ‘Chito’ fight felt so big. The moment, being the main event, fighting for the title…

“[UFC White House] feels like a big fight,” he added. “I mean, it’s the f**king White House. There’s only six fights on the card. It’s such a big deal.

“It feels like a big fight, but the moment, I guess, doesn’t seem as big as a title fight. You know what I’m saying?”

O’Malley is riding a win over Song Yadong. That win separated him from back-to-back championship losses to Merab Dvalishvili. From the sounds of it, he’s missing the days of fighting five-round main events.

“I went from the f*cking main event, to the co-main event, now I’m on the third fight,” O’Malley said, joking.

How do you think the UFC White House card stacks up against the other events Sean O’Malley has participated in?