Former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley is willing to make sacrifices and lifestyle changes to get back to the top of the sport. One major change “Suga” has implemented is backing away from social media involvement.
O’Malley has a substantial following across social media platforms. It’s part of why the 30-year old is one of the most recognizable fighters on the UFC roster. O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch, believes the change was needed to get O’Malley where he wants to be.
“He’s worked so hard for years on these socials and you’d be surprised by the amount of money he makes on them, it’s crazy, but it’s like right now, to win in this top 5, you’ve got to be focused on your training,” Welch explained to Submission Radio.
“Being creative on Instagram, being creative on Snapchat, being creative on YouTube, and then worried about all your deliverables, when they’ll be posted. Your mind’s thinking about all this stuff, and it takes more energy than you think.”
O’Malley lost the 135-pound championship to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306 in September. Looking to take things to the next level, Welch believes O’Malley needed to free himself from social media distractions.
“Every single person wants you on their podcast, every single person wants you at their party, celebs, athletes, they’re messaging you asking to hang out and you’re just taking all this in,” Welch said. “So for him to put it all down, to put Snapchat down, to put Instagram down, put the YouTube down; he needs to do that and it’s going to be able to take him to the next level.”