Sean O’Malley Still Chasing Conor McGregor Level Stardom

January 21, 2026

Sean O’Malley has revealed he still feels he can reach Conor McGregor levels of stardom.

‘Suga’ returns at UFC 324 and has his sights set on replicating McGregor’s impact on the UFC.

Sean O’Malley Chasing Conor McGregor Levels Of Stardom

Former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley has revealed he still has ambitions of reaching the levels of stardom achieved by Conor McGregor.

O’Malley returns at UFC 324, looking to get back to winning ways following back-to-back defeats to Merab Dvalishvili.

The American remains one of the biggest draws in MMA despite no longer holding UFC gold, and still feels he can become the biggest star in the UFC before the end of his career.

The biggest star in the UFC currently is still McGregor, who is back training and preparing for a possible return at UFC White House on June 14. Before he returns, McGregor has new UFC contract negotiations to deal with come February, before a possible summer return on the South Lawn.

"It was a kind of delusional idea" – Sean O’Malley on chasing Conor McGregor-level stardom #UFC324

"I said in interviews I'm going to be bigger than Conor. It was a kind of delusional idea because Conor is massive, but there's still a path for me to get to that – maybe not that… pic.twitter.com/UhxYH8hP62

— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) January 21, 2026

Although McGregor hasn’t fought in almost five years, he remains the biggest MMA star there has ever been and could ever be, with nobody anywhere near his level.

O’Malley has said previously that he was going to be a bigger star than ’Notorious’, but now admits that was delusional. That being said, he is still chasing the McGregor levels of stardom and feels he can get to that point one day:

“I said in interviews I’m going to be bigger than Conor. It was a kind of delusional idea because Conor is massive, but there’s still a path for me to get to that – maybe not that level but I want to be the biggest star in the UFC at one point,” O’Malley told TNT Sports.

Whether or not ‘Suga’ achieves these levels of fame and stardom remains to be seen. He is huge on social media and also has a highly successful and popular YouTube channel, not to mention being one of the best fighters in the world.

⭐️Sean O’Malley still thinks he can reach Conor McGregor-level stardom

"I said I'm going to be bigger than Conor. It was a kind of delusional idea. but there's still a path for me to get to that- I want to be the biggest star in the UFC at one point."@ufcontnt pic.twitter.com/6pGRKeVfpT

— Dovy🔌 (@DovySimuMMA) January 21, 2026

O’Malley Admits ‘Delusional Idea’ Chasing Conor McGregor’s Fame

Although Sean O’Malley still feels he can replicate the levels of fame, stardom and success of Conor McGregor and become the biggest star in the UFC once the Irishman fully retires, he does admit his previous comments were totally delusional.

‘Suga’ revealed in previous interviews that he felt he could overtake McGregor and surpass his levels of stardom, but now realises those sentiments were totally untrue and slightly deluded.

McGregor has been helping the homeless in Dublin in recent weeks as well as training in Ireland amid speculation of his UFC White House main event, and will once again become the name on everyone’s lips if indeed he does make his highly-anticipated octagon return.

Song Yadong says it was ‘totally racist’ for Sean O’Malley to wear a face mask at their first face-off 🇨🇳 😷

But at the same time he understands it’s good for the fight’s promotion and O’Malley is trying to be “the second Conor Mcgregor”. pic.twitter.com/RCjaQxIcTt

— Combat Buzz (@CombatBuzzX) January 6, 2026

Despite his controversies outside of the cage in recent years, the Irishman remains the single biggest star the UFC have ever had. Not only that, he is still the biggest star despite having not fought since July 2021 and actually losing back-to-back fights to Dustin Poirier.

O’Malley’s previous claims that he would surpass McGregor and become a bigger star might have been delusional, but also show the self belief and confidence the ‘Suga’ show has.

If the former bantamweight champion is to have any chance of getting to the levels of fame and stardom of Conor McGregor, he must first beat Song Yadong at UFC 324 and get back to winning ways.

Should he become a two-time champion and win the 135-pound belt back this year, then he is back on the right path of potentially becoming the biggest star in the UFC, once ‘Notorious’ retires for good of course.