UFC Noche: Conor McGregor’s heir and a historic women’s trilogy – Inside $20m Sphere event

Despite the growth of MMA, no-one is yet to achieve the level of recognition outside the sport as former double UFC champion Conor McGregor.

O’Malley has drawn comparisons to the Irishman because of his confidence and exciting knockout power, and there are signs the UFC see the 29-year-old as the heir to McGregor’s throne when it comes to star power.

When O’Malley beat Aljamain Sterling for the title last year, the promotion shared the knockout on social media to a worldwide audience – something it rarely does due to rights deals with various broadcasters.

Now the organisation has selected O’Malley as the face of its ambitious Sphere show.

“When you talk about Conor’s personality, the thing he always did was deliver on the big fights, every single time,” said White.

“In this sport when you have what Sean O’Malley has, and you can go out and win the big fights… and O’Malley is a smart kid like Conor too, he just gets it.”

O’Malley says UFC Noche could provide the springboard to becoming the UFC’s biggest star – if McGregor loses his next fight.

The 36-year-old is due to face American Michael Chandler but a date is yet to be set after McGregor pulled out of their June bout with injury.

“I think I’m very close. I think Conor has one big fight left in him, but there’s a big question mark – can he come back and beat Michael Chandler?” said O’Malley.

“If he loses, I would assume I’m there, I’m the guy, I’m the number one.”