Sean O’Malley says he won’t lose confidence in himself if he’s defeated by Petr Yan at UFC 280: “I don’t have have to go out there and beat Petr to know I’m good”

Sean O’Malley says he knows he is a good fighter and his confidence won’t drop if Petr Yan defeats him at UFC 280.

O’Malley surprised many when he announced he would be facing Yan at UFC 280 on October 22 in Abu Dhabi. It is a massive step up in competition and the first time ‘Suga’ is fighting someone ranked in the top five, with Yan being ranked first overall.

Given Yan is the former champion and the number one contender at bantamweight, O’Malley says if he somehow loses to Yan, it won’t ruin him at all.

“Say I go out there and lose to Petr, I’m not going to lose confidence, I’m not going to be like ‘oh I suck.’ I lost to the number one guy in the world, I’m going to get that back someday,” O’Malley said to BT Sport. “I already know I’m good as I am, I don’t have to beat Petr to know I’m good, I know I’m good. Losing to Petr wouldn’t be the end of the train, I’m still going, I’m still going to be champ. It’s such a huge opportunity, I’m f*****g so excited. I just want to go back home and train.”

Sean O’Malley is also a sizeable underdog heading into the fight, so the oddsmakers aren’t giving him much of a chance. But, even as he says, if he loses it would be a good learning experience and he does think he and Yan will fight multiple times before their careers are over.

O’Malley is coming off the No Contest against Pedro Munhoz at UFC 276 due to an accidental eye poke. Before that, he was on a three-fight win streak with wins over Raulian Paiva, Kris Moutinho, and Thomas Almeida after losing to Marlon Vera by TKO.

What do you make of Sean O’Malley saying he won’t lose confidence if Petr Yan beats him at UFC 280?