No one’s forcing you to fight

Sean O’Malley offered a contrary point of view to people complaining about UFC fighter pay.

Over the last eight years, O’Malley has significantly changed his life by making a fortune during his UFC tenure.

The former bantamweight champion utilized his massive platform to produce several revenue streams, something he worked toward after initially earning his UFC contract on ‘Dana White‘s Contender Series.’

In a recent interview with Demetrious Johnson, O’Malley sounded off on less-experienced fighters complaining about the money being made early in their UFC careers. He said:

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“You got to bring value to the promotion. People complain, ‘I’m only getting paid 10 and 10.’ But in reality, who’s there to see you fight? Your mom, your dad, your sister, a couple buddies, no one’s paying to watch you on TV. If you don’t want to make $50,000 a fight, go work at Target. No one’s forcing you to fight.”

Check out Sean O’Malley‘s comments below (25:15):

Sean O’Malley explained why he stopped using social media ahead of Merab Dvalishvili rematch

Sean O’Malley’s UFC bantamweight title run ended due to a unanimous decision loss against Merab Dvalishvili in September 2024.

On June 7, O’Malley looks to regain the 135-pound world title when he faces Dvalishvili in a rematch in the UFC 316 main event.

The 30-year-old made several changes before fighting Dvalishvili a second time, including not using social media.

O’Malley explained his decision during the aforementioned interview with Demetrious Johnson. He said:

“I feel like social media is a distraction to just life in general, but I think especially when you have a huge following and you’re almost trying to keep up with that. You get almost attached to Suga, who that’s Suga Sean, that’s millions of followers. I open that up, and I just, woah, you feel it. I just felt like it was a little bit of a distraction. It was a little bit of an anxiety creator.” (39:40)

O’Malley added:

“Me getting off social media was kind of me seeking more peace throughout my life, and it’s been life-changing. I really do feel like being off of that has changed my life in a better way, as far as not feeling like I’m so connected with the world and seeing everyone’s issues.” (39:40)

About the author

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Jake Foley is a journalist at Sportskeeda, specializing in covering all forms of combat sports, including MMA, Boxing, Kickboxing, and Muay Thai. His passion is ignited by the exceptional fusion of physical and mental skills demanded by world-class fighters in these sports. Jake is captivated by the intricate mix of fierce determination and a modest mindset exhibited by athletes in these disciplines. He also finds the atmosphere of major championships, like the epic clash between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor, truly unparalleled.

Jake has earned his UFC credentials to cover the major events for Sportskeeda and has conducted several interviews.

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