Sean O'Malley regrets trash-talking Sean Strickland: "I shouldn't have said that"
Sean O'Malley recently reflected on the verbal spat he and Sean Strickland had a few years ago, and 'Suga,' in a surprising twist, regrets the infamous jab he took at Strickland.
Yesterday, Sean O'Malley made an appearance on One Night with Steiny, during which he touched on the infamous trash-talking clash he had with Sean Strickland at the UFC 2024 seasonal press conference. Despite rarely ever being apologetic, 'Suga' has since expressed regret over how far he took things in response to Strickland's prodding.
Sean O'Malley doesn't want a feud with Sean Strickland
In his latest sitdown with Aaron Steinberg, Sean O'Malley reflected on his past animosity with Sean Strickland, which began at the UFC 2024 seasonal press conference. Both men were UFC champions at the time, with 'Suga' as the then bantamweight champion set to defend his belt against Marlon 'Chito' Vera in a rematch at UFC 299, which O'Malley won via dominant unanimous decision. Meanwhile, Strickland was the middleweight kingpin and scheduled to defend his belt against Dricus du Plessis at UFC 297, where he lost via split-decision. At the aforementioned press conference, Strickland poked fun at O'Malley's marital life, causing O'Malley to fire back with a jab at Strickland's childhood abuse, which he has since said he regrets doing (1:03:58):
"Well, Strickland was coming at me, bro. Strickland's coming at me, what am I not gonna defend myself? I was like, 'Strickland's probably gonna come at me.' He came at me one time in the back locker room, cause we were fighting on the same card. I had my 6ix9ine tattoo and he's like pressing me, in my face, talking about it, and I was like, 'Goddamn it.' Strickland would f**k me up. So, I'm like, what am I gonna talk s**t? But we've shook hands, we're fine. I shouldn't have said that, what I said. It is what it is. The thing is, I shouldn't. Strickland would f**k me up, right? In a fight. So I, for the most part, don't talk s**t to people who can f**k you up."
O'Malley isn't the only fighter to have mocked Strickland's childhood trauma. Du Plessis also did so ahead of their UFC 297 encounter, enraging Strickland at the pre-fight press conference. Khamzat Chimaev also did so at the UFC 328 pre-fight press conference, though he ultimately lost the fight and the middleweight belt to Strickland via split-decision.
