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Sean O'Malley: Becoming the UFC Bantamweight Champion | E97 · In Search Of Excellence

• 0:00
  Sean O'Malley: I've never really looked at fighting illegal. It's violent, dangerous sport I just kind of always looked at it as a sport. Like, it's like, I'm going to go out there and turn this dude's lights off and the most non violent way thing put a put him asleep and the fight. You know, it's just like it's always been chest and it's always been a violent game of chess. It's never been like aggressive fight. Like, I want to hurt this guy because I don't like it was never really been like that, to me. It's always more of like a sport, who's gonna go out there and who's gonna win
• 0:42
  Randall Kaplan: Welcome to In Search of Excellence where we meet entrepreneurs, CEOs, entertainers, athletes, motivational speakers, and trailblazers of excellence with incredible stories from all walks of life. My name is Randall Kaplan. I'm a serial entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and the host of In Search of Excellence, which I started to motivate and inspire us to achieve excellence in all areas of our lives. My guest today is Sean O'Malley, the UFC bantamweight champion of the world with a 17 on one record, who everybody believes is that next Conor McGregor, sugar Shawn, Welcome to In Search of Excellence. Thank you for being here.
• 1:19
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah. Thanks for having me. I'm glad it worked out in Vegas, in Vegas.
• 1:24
  Randall Kaplan: So I always start my show with our family because I always want to know what kind of values your family instilled in you. And what what did they instill in you? What were your parents like growing up and what kind of influence they have on you.
• 1:37
  Sean O'Malley: My dad was a cop.
• 1:37
  Sean O'Malley: He was a detective for 20 years worked as an aquatics officer bounced around in that. And then my mom was a nurse. Most of my memories are just sports, like going to going to the practice getting picked up from practice going from baseball to soccer practice in the same day. So most of my memories looking back are just like, we were competitive. Those three, four or five years old, playing all sorts of sports, hated school from early on, like elementary school. I was like, I knew I didn't like school, middle school, hated it. High School, hated it just didn't like school. For whatever reason. I don't really know. But yeah, I think I feel like I had a pretty normal childhood grown up grew up in Helena, Montana, like a mile from the lake. The only problem with that was you can only go to the lake like two months out of the year, because Montana is so cold. And then when it's really hot, there's always fires. So there's always very few times you could actually go out to the lake, but it was cool. I had a I had a normal childhood, I'd say
• 2:40
  Randall Kaplan: your dad was a cop? Did you go out and do some narcotics work with the undercover? Or did you ever worry about his safety? Yeah, I remember
• 2:48
  Sean O'Malley: being young, worried about it more so than I got older. I mean, being in a cop in Helena, Montana, it'd be a lot worse places in the United States to be a cop. So I was like, well, it's not too bad.
• 2:59
  Sean O'Malley: But yeah, there was definitely times I was like, Man, that's kind of a dangerous job. But it was interesting. You know, I wasn't, you know, didn't drink didn't smoke till I was, you know, old, older, and I didn't.
• 3:11
  Sean O'Malley: I was like terrified of marijuana. Because my dad, and my mom would basically just say, it's like the worst thing ever.
• 3:17
  Sean O'Malley: So growing up, I was just very terrified of that didn't drink till I was 21. So which I think is a good thing. It got me to from Helena, Montana, when I moved. I was 19 years old and moved to Phoenix. And I was, you know, I'm glad I didn't partake in any of those until I was older. But yeah.
• 3:35
  Randall Kaplan: So you said when you were a kid, you played a lot of sports. What kind of sports did you play? And were you good?
• 3:39
  Randall Kaplan: Do you know you're a good athlete? Good hand eye coordination back then.
• 3:42
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah, I always I was. I was fast. I wasn't as fast. Played. soccer, baseball, football, basketball those four all year round, because depending on what season if it's cold out snowing with basketball season. But yeah, I played sports. My whole episode in my both my brothers my sister. We all just played sports. It was like traveling baseball, traveling basketball, school basketball. Just yeah, those four sports all year round nonstop. The
• 4:14
  Randall Kaplan: popular kid I mean, you have a great personality, not really definitely
• 4:17
  Sean O'Malley: wasn't a popular kid. I didn't really fit in with the jocks, sports guys. I didn't really fit in with the, you know, the skateboard crew, I kind of had my own little clique or our own little group that kind of got along with everybody. We're kind of, you know, shitheads but uh,
• 4:33
  Randall Kaplan: what's a shaved head back, man?
• 4:35
  Sean O'Malley: I don't know 10 of class. clowny you know, it's a big laugh. Do and I was never a bad kid. But uh, yeah, I don't say I was definitely not a popular kid. No,
• 4:45
  Randall Kaplan: you get in trouble as a kid at all. I mean, your parents scold you or ground around you at all?
• 4:50
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah, at school, we'd get in trouble or I'd get in trouble a little bit, you know, maybe having a laser on the teacher. Bargaining class or red laser red laser shit like that, you know, so I was I was never too bad, but I was definitely a troublemaker.
• 5:03
  Randall Kaplan: Did you ski? I mean, Halina is a cold cold city, cold state, Montana, some great, great skiing there. Big Sky. Yeah,
• 5:10
  Sean O'Malley: I snowboard skied a little bit when I was younger 12 1314 around maybe that age group, and then I stopped. Not a huge fan of the cold. So ever since I moved to Phoenix, I was like, hadn't really gone back definitely on the winter, but very little bit, but it definitely did. So
• 5:29
  Randall Kaplan: you said you have three siblings, you guys tight where you type in tight now.
• 5:34
  Sean O'Malley: Um, I'd say we were a little bit tighter when we were younger than you get in the middle school, high school.
• 5:38
  Sean O'Malley: We kind of were all four years apart.
• 5:40
  Randall Kaplan: So 16 years, your parents had kids? Yep. Yep,
• 5:44
  Sean O'Malley: we're all boom, boom, boom, four years apart. So we kind of were close when you're younger. We're all doing our own thing. middle school, high school. You know, it's kind of separated. But now you know, my brother, both my brothers, my sister, my mom all live in Arizona, which is really cool.
• 5:57
  Sean O'Malley: So because you moved there?
• 5:57
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah, I moved there. And I was there for about seven, eight years by myself. Trying to get everyone to move down. My sister was still in high school. My mom and dad are still together. My little brother was going to school there. My older brother was just a complete wreck, like not doing good at all odd drugs, just not doing good. So there was just a mess back home. And I finally you know, was in a position financially to be able to really help everyone out. So now everyone lives down in Phoenix, and everyone's doing pretty good. You still
• 6:24
  Randall Kaplan: help them out financially? I mean, when someone when someone gets rich and makes a ton of money off and a lot of people say I'm going to support my family are you is your family in that position?
• 6:33
  Randall Kaplan: Right? Yeah, I definitely
• 6:35
  Sean O'Malley: don't want to enable them towards like, you know, I don't this completely rely on me. But there's, you know, my mom works for me. I want to she do for you. She does. She's like she she runs my life. Like as far as making sure all my taxes are, you know, done, sent into the accountant.
• 6:53
  Sean O'Malley: Look ran through. All my bills are paid. I've six houses which kind of helps me manage all that she does. Every choose works, though. Anything I need done.
• 7:02
  Sean O'Malley: She's on top of that. My little sister helps out elbow farm. She helps out at the farm. I also bought like four houses from her. She's a realtor, right?
• 7:12
  Sean O'Malley: That worked out nice. My little brother and I did a podcast for a while but he went he's going back to school, a chiropractic school. So he's been really busy doing his thing.
• 7:20
  Randall Kaplan: What age is he now?
• 7:22
  Sean O'Malley: He's 20. Who was crazy. 25 Yeah. So if I know my older brother, he's doing way better. He's he's got a son, him and his son live with my mom right now. And they're, you know, getting by doing their thing. But yeah, it's nice.
• 7:36
  Sean O'Malley: Everyone's everyone's healthy and doing good.
• 7:39
  Randall Kaplan: I collect shoes.
• 7:39
  Randall Kaplan: You collect houses? Yeah. So what are the six apps and where are they? And when? Why so many?
• 7:46
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah, they're all in Arizona. My the first house I bought was just like, I always wanted to be smart with my money. I was always my mom was very, very stingy when it comes to money. Like she had four kids, you want to make sure we have all or everything we had shorted make sure we had everything we needed. So I was like, I remember my parents always fight about money. It was always about money. I don't know if that's why in my mind when I was younger, is I want to be rich, because I've always I've always wanted to be rich. But then when I started making money as a okay, you have the urge to get a lot of money, you have an urge to like I want to buy something nice or buy something.
• 8:20
  Sean O'Malley: And for me, I was like okay, we'll put the money into a house and then read that out and get the mortgage gets paid for at least I spent that money it felt good. I felt you know, whatever reason feels good to spend money like that. But it's also like that money's not just gone, it's somewhere good. So I just kind of like buying houses. I've met a couple buddies Blake, who's my assistant now that you just met actually met him about two years ago, three years ago, playing called today's to stream stream on Twitch like a lot every day.
• 8:49
  Sean O'Malley: There's a certain there's certain group of people that would be in my chat all the time. Every time I go live there and my chat him another buddy Schmidty couple of my other but other buddies were always in there, and I bought a house or rented out to them and move them all down to Arizona. So you've you've
• 9:03
  Randall Kaplan: made these random guys online that I'm online, you're famous at this point are coming up. Yep. You got tons of people coming up to you. Right, too many don't know who to trust. Yeah. And so how are you meeting people on trying to sort through the madness? I feel like
• 9:18
  Sean O'Malley: you know, you know, you know, it's just like I invited him I didn't just invite him out to live here. I invited him out had a little a little little hangout session with a bunch of my subscribers and I liked these kids
• 9:29
  Randall Kaplan: in person. Yeah.
• 9:29
  Randall Kaplan: So you invite him to Arizona.
• 9:32
  Randall Kaplan: And like these kids, I got
• 9:33
  Sean O'Malley: along with the group and you know, they're good, good people and invited him I said, I got you know, I have an extra house because want to rent it out. Four of them moved down for the you know, they still live lived there for about a year. And now he's my assistant. So we you know, he's one of my good buddies. And it's really cool. It's been, it's cool. Like I met a lot of cool people. I don't game anymore. I quit streaming recently, but pi.
• 9:53
  Sean O'Malley: Just like just, you know, I'm at the top of the game right now I'm the I'm the champ I got a target on my back. Like those two hours I spent gaming or two hours I can spend with Elena who have three year old princess or, you know, just recovering you trade in the morning, Recovery Training in the afternoon streaming takes a lot of energy, especially at the high energy stream, I was screaming, I was you know, playing, I was engaging with a chat, just a lot of energy. And I just, you know, I needed to put that energy somewhere else.
• 10:23
  Randall Kaplan: Let's go back a little bit to school. Education, a lot of people think it's the best investment you can make in yourself. You felt like you were not learning anything. And it was a waste of time, your parents telling you, hey, Shawn, you know, you shouldn't stay in school, you should do better.
• 10:38
  Randall Kaplan: You just said Fuck this, I'm done. Yeah, I
• 10:40
  Sean O'Malley: just I remember being like third grade. And like, I just, I'm over this. But third grade, I feel like I remember young being like, 10 years old, probably something like, I realized, you go, you gotta go to middle school, How's it go high school, but you don't have to go to college. I knew for I knew I wasn't going to college, right? Not paying to come go to school, no way, for me was, I didn't really enjoy reading or learning. Because all the stuff I was reading or learning was something I was not interested in at all. When I moved to Arizona, I was 19. Like me and Tim kind of started reading books on, you know, sports psychology and just how to how to train smarter how to how to use your mind and put yourself in the present moment and have intentions going into a training session. Like that stuff was fascinating to me. So I'd read like, oh, maybe I don't hate reading as hate reading Shit, I don't care about right.
• 11:36
  Sean O'Malley: Like, that's what I got out of that. I didn't like, like, I just didn't like school because I was like, it just doesn't make sense. You go to school for eight hours, you have an hour each class, you have homework on each class, he would test on each class, how he goes, you know, some people are very, very smart and can just do that. But for me, I'm like, I can't do eight classes in a day and not remember, remember each different thing and then have a test on all of them. And then do homework on everything. I stopped doing homework in like sixth grade, like, I'm not I can't do this. But uh, so I just never understood the setup of school. I just don't get it. I still don't understand why I don't get what I feel like there's got to be a better way to, you know, educate people.
• 12:16
  Randall Kaplan: I mean, you're a role model, right? I mean, you know, this to 10s of millions of people, they look up to you. And a lot of people are sitting out there listening today as well and say, Hey, man, Sean, sugar doesn't like school, maybe I really don't need school. What's your advice for people out there who view you as their champion?
• 12:32
  Randall Kaplan: And you're a example of people who don't go to school? And do you want your three year old daughter to be a student go to college.
• 12:43
  Sean O'Malley: I feel like I just got lucky, I found a passion. I think that's, that's what if I didn't have a passion, I wouldn't be able to sell.
• 12:48
  Sean O'Malley: Like, it depends what you're passionate about. If you find something you're passionate about that involves like having to go to school to learn and get an educated degree or whatever to get you to that next level, then yeah, 100% For me, I was kickboxing, I was knocking people out, I don't need to go to school for this, and you go to the gym, and you train and you hit met, and you learn how to spar and you know, I should be learning about how to eat healthy, should be learning about how to meditate should be learning about how to control my motion, they should be learning about all this other stuff that actually is going to benefit me for what I want to do. So as far as Atlanta going to school? I don't know. I mean, she's three right now. She's gonna I think you learn in ABC learning how to count learn, and all the basic basic stuff very important, obviously. But at a certain level, it's like, it depends what she's passionate about.
• 13:36
  Sean O'Malley: Maybe she's, maybe she doesn't have a passion until she's way older. Like some people don't really know what they're passionate about. That's, that's tricky. I don't have advice for that. Because I don't know. I mean, I was lucky enough to find something I'm passionate about.
• 14:41
  Randall Kaplan: So you're on vacation with your family in Utah. You got a call from somebody. And that was sort of the start of it. So what was that? What was that call? Like?
• 14:48
  Randall Kaplan: And you're sitting there? I mean, where were you in Utah?
• 14:51
  Randall Kaplan: And what are you thinking, Hey, man, this is?
• 14:54
  Sean O'Malley: That's funny.
• 14:54
  Sean O'Malley: Bring that up, because I actually forgot. I do remember that. Now that you said that. I forgot. But but like that was actually the initial call. My buddy Mitch Foley. It was in the summer. We're at a campground and he called it like, Yo, you want to check out this fighting gym? And I was like, Yeah, that sounds cool. You know, I think I was 1516 years old time going into freshman year, sophomore year, whatever that age group is. Like, yeah, that sounds sweet. I was kind of over i still likes sports. I still like competing. When I was over the team sports didn't really get good grades and get good grades to play sports. Didn't really get along with the jocks and really get along with the coaches was always rebellious.
• 15:31
  Sean O'Malley: Hey, to take an orders like boxing, the one on one. You win because you win you lose because you lose sick. It's your fault.
• 15:38
  Sean O'Malley: Either way. I wanted to I wanted to experience that. So yeah, we checked out a fighting fighting gym in Montana that you know, it's not the most knowledgeable place but it built in Me as a fighter for sure because I was able to fight so often and yeah, that was that was it went back to Montana with check with Jim just loved it.
• 16:02
  Randall Kaplan: This episode of In Search of Excellence is brought to you by sandy.com s a n d e.com. We're a Yelp for beaches and have created the world's most comprehensive beach resource by cataloging more than 100 categories of information for every beach in the world, more than 100,000 beaches and 212 countries. sandy.com provides beach scores around the world with detailed comprehensive and easy to use information to help them plan their perfect beach getaway at home and abroad. And to make sure you're never disappointed by a beach visit again, plan the perfect beach trip today by visiting sandy.com. That's www.sand.com the link is in our show notes. Stay Sandy my friends. So you get in the gym for the first time and you're looking around, there's weights there. There's bags, and you know what to do, right? Just like like what what did you do you start pumping weights? Was there someone in there showing you what to do? Did you have a mentor in their trainer? Wasn't
• 17:04
  Sean O'Malley: really wait was more of just like a fighting gym? There wasn't really like a benchpress. And you know, there's bags hanging? I think it I think the first session I ever did was actually jujitsu, which I ended up stopping for like three years because I didn't like it. That was like my first, any first time training, we like doing jujitsu. And then shortly after that, we just kickbox with spar. So basically, most of our sessions were sparring and hitting this and that's what I like to do. I was I would naturally I was like, Okay, I'm pretty good at this. I was athletic of hard to hit and you know, able to hit people.
• 17:34
  Sean O'Malley: Because I feel like I've naturally gifted when it comes to speed very fast. And I think that's the number one attribute in fighting is speed. So I naturally was pretty good at it and just kind of got addicted to it. Thought chicks would like it was a big thing too. Like, I want to get chicks. You're 16 you're insecure. Fighting sounds kind of cool. So I was definitely a big part of why I want to fight.
• 17:59
  Randall Kaplan: You went back to get your GED degree or in a special school you get in a fight you get kicked out. But what happened there?
• 18:05
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah, it's hard to even remember how it all works. I went to so many different high schools for a little while there went to I went to Capitol and then I went to
• 18:14
  Randall Kaplan: this was back in Montana. Yep. What's capital
• 18:18
  Sean O'Malley: to capital hi and Helena that I went to live with my aunt uncle and Hamilton went there for a little bit. ended up kind of fucking around over there. My aunt and uncle were like, we can't we don't, we can't handle him. He's sneaking out hanging out with chicks and doing all this stuff, which was true, but I was like so they're like, just get me out of here.
• 18:39
  Sean O'Malley: So I moved back to Helena decided to drop out go to this boot camp Montana Youth Challenge go there for a few weeks, maybe a month or so I think it was a six month program would end up sneaking out of that with a couple buddies doing their own thing eventually got kicked out of that went back home when I tried to do my GED like this I just don't really care for that then go to this school called Powell project of alternative learning. So it was like it was just like a alternative high school to where they it was just for people like me it was like people that didn't like school. still needed to get get a diploma or whatever. So I ended up going to there and then graduated and yeah, so bounced around quite a bit. You
• 19:24
  Randall Kaplan: just mentioned you are in insecure kid, I think yes. So many so many people who are very successful, including me was very insecure and didn't have a lot of friends. stuttered was bullied and was really in my own world for a very long time.
• 19:38
  Randall Kaplan: So what point did you kind of come out of that? I mean, sometimes as a boy or a young man, I think one of the things is are you too uncool? To have a date with a girl and yeah, that was certainly my my take for a very long time. So did you get the girls when you started fighting a wedding or what? What was the first success you had?
• 19:59
  Randall Kaplan: They're like Alright, my kickboxing is working.
• 20:04
  Sean O'Malley: Um, yeah, I think I mean, I think obviously, every kid in high school is insecure.
• 20:08
  Sean O'Malley: You can't I don't think you're gonna find a kid that's not insecure in high school whether you have acne or you don't know if your shirt nice enough or you're wearing the right jeans or you'd be just for me, it was a little bit of acne looking back on him if he was that bad, but I remember just being like, yeah, your hormones are crazy at 1516 years old. Yeah, so I think you know kickbox won a couple fights. It definitely gained some confidence. Talking to chicks was you know, a little bit easier for whatever reason, maybe just that little bit of confidence you get from Knocking someone out a lot of people don't know that feeling, but it's a good feeling. So, yeah, I'd say you know, it definitely I
• 20:53
  Randall Kaplan: worked. So kickboxing I think a lot of people don't know what that is.
• 20:57
  Randall Kaplan: So are you in a square boxing ring and is there a league? I mean, you're in Montana, who are you fighting? Yeah. So
• 21:05
  Sean O'Malley: they would have kickboxing and just having like a whole fight event so some people will be boxing some people will be kickboxing you had to be a team to do an MMA fight so 1617 years old, so I only kickbox so it's just gonna ring headgear shin or head sometimes headgear sometimes not but shin guards boxing gloves, and we would just yeah kickbox like the three minute round two minute rounds. Just go I remember you know, you'd fight one weekend take a weekend off fight again another another city just kind of travel around Montana fighting. And but yeah, the so I did that. I did I think he did for boxing fights and for kickboxing fights from 16 to 18.
• 21:41
  Sean O'Malley: That was that turned 18 I did every one of them all eight. No.
• 21:45
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah, boxing kickboxing. One of those as an amateur in that I did MMA I was 12 to two as an amateur MMA fighter and I turned pro.
• 21:53
  Randall Kaplan: As a kickboxer, where you just wiping people off the map early on, or to take a while to kind of understand what you were doing.
• 21:59
  Sean O'Malley: No, I was just 516 years old fight another, you know, 16 1718 year old. And yeah, I was, I was knocking them out.
• 22:08
  Randall Kaplan: So you said that when you dropped out of school, you weren't learning. But you've also learned a lot when you started kickboxing the lessons you learned there were a lot more important life lessons anybody learned in school? What were the lessons and how have they applied to your rest of your life?
• 22:24
  Sean O'Malley: I think I just learned I wanted to be like the best I want. It was more. So once I got into MMA and wanted to be the best when I decided when I was 18, that I want to be considered one of the greatest fighters of all time. What does that? What does that mean? What do I have to do? And I'm like, Okay, now I have to learn how to eat good. So don't get injured at this, learn about my sleep schedule. Learn about my mind way perform, being able to show up in that moment, every single time. That's what I feel like I do better than everyone I show up that night, what March 9 in Miami, I'm going to show up, I know how to show up. I know how to I know how to for 12 weeks how to create that headspace of where I need to be to show up that night. So I feel like I've learned a lot about and that and I learned more so that that doesn't even that's not just about fighting that's just in life in general sleeping good eating good and take care of your mind and body. It's like that's I learned that because I wanted to be the greatest fighter. But I mean, I just need that for just everyday life in general. So yeah, that's what I learned most.
• 23:26
  Randall Kaplan: Thanks. So many of us have dreams. As a kid. I always knew I want to have my own company, girl company. I sold T shirts in college. And that was my thing. I remember sophomore year in high school, econ class, we did a tour of federal mogul, which is a fortune 500 company in Southfield, Michigan. And we did a tour probably 40 of us in there. And we're in the CEOs place. And it has a huge desk and the woman who's doing the tour, he's not there. So huge.
• 23:54
  Randall Kaplan: Ah, gosh, this is cool. And I said, Can I sit behind his desk?
• 23:58
  Randall Kaplan: Just look at me. What, what? And she thought, Okay, why not? And I remember feeling how good that felt. And I said, one day and I knew even then what I want to do I want to go on business. I thought I had a knack for it. We all have dreams, right as kids.
• 24:12
  Randall Kaplan: So how old? were you when you actually had the dream? That you want to be number one champion of the world? And what's your advice to all people out there?
• 24:19
  Randall Kaplan: Who have the same dream and say to themselves, man, that's fucking hard to do less than 1% and 1% you will be successful.
• 24:26
  Randall Kaplan: But what's the mentality? Or what's the advice you have for all those people?
• 24:32
  Sean O'Malley: Oh, yeah, I wanted to be rich and famous before I want to be champ before I wanted to be the best fighter in the world. I wanted to be rich, famous when I was really young. So I didn't really know how it's going to get there. But I remember, you know, 1617 years old, I started selling T shirts, you know, you don't fight coming up, you'd make a shirt, you'd sell it. I would get paid ticket sales to get $5 A ticket. So I was hustling. 1617 years old, 18 years old as an amateur trying to you know, make as much money each fight as I could. You're
• 25:01
  Randall Kaplan: fighting and before the fight. You're making your own T shirts and going around to the audience. So we do.
• 25:07
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah, so if I had a fight coming up, and you know, a month I would make T shirts and my dad would help me sell them to our friends and you know, local people in Helena would would 2030 shirts at a time or whatever. It was nothing crazy. But I remember I wanted to be I wanted to be rich, but I didn't know how I was gonna be rich. And then once I started fighting, I'm like, okay, maybe this could be it because I don't really know what else is what else it's gonna be. But uh, yeah, that's, you know, 1617 year olds selling T shirts and merchant stuff. Now I have my own sugar shop and it does really well. And I feel like some people just have it. Some people want it. Some people don't. And I think if you want it and you have it, you'll figure out how to get there.
• 25:47
  Sean O'Malley: Like you just got to put in the work. You don't need to you can't have someone You can't need someone to tell you to do the work. Like I never needed a coach to say, Hey, we got we got to train you go to the gym, I never needed. I was in the gym, I was training and I didn't really need someone say, Hey, make sure you try to learn how to eat healthy like me to my buddy, can we live together, we kind of started learning all that together. But I didn't need someone to, like, want me to improve. I wanted to improve.
• 26:14
  Sean O'Malley: And I feel like if you have that, like you have a good shot at being successful, whatever you do.
• 26:21
  Randall Kaplan: I also sold T shirts I college freshman year, I saw some other people going.
• 26:24
  Randall Kaplan: Oh, interesting. So back then you couldn't go online. I mean, I'm 55 years old. So no Google to look so you're in the phonebook. Yellow Pages, hey, I want to make these features. So I bought them for six bucks and you're taking a risk because you don't know if the shirts are coming in good or bad. And short sleeves were $1 more I sold this the short sleeves for 12 long sleeves for 18 So better margin on those went door to door in every dorm. I get kicked out of every floor I go back in the back and I literally hit every single door. Well, okay, so I was selling just do it shirts.
• 27:03
  Randall Kaplan: Nike didn't really ask permission obviously. And I thought I created better just do it. Sure. So I mean today you could never get away with it.
• 27:10
  Randall Kaplan: You know 1986 or 9090 and and you know, the experience of cold calling and getting door shot in your face and you're getting kicked out was very very good for me and I think one of the greatest skills you can have to be successful is cold calling people. So have you ever gone door to door and learn the cold calling skill and the fear and in getting over fear of rejection? I mean, it could be selling stuff it could be going up to a bunch of girls and saying hey, we go out with me and it's hard you No No way.
• 27:42
  Sean O'Malley: Um, I did one time I had like a sponsorship right out to where like pay me 800 bucks and you'll have this on your logo this on this and this and I had to go to a couple different sponsors and that was hard for me that was like oh, I felt I just felt super super uncomfortable. I only did that a few times. But yeah, I was very uncomfortable.
• 28:01
  Randall Kaplan: So you're young you want to be famous why the fame? I mean, the the famous people I know can't leave their house can't go to the grocery store. have trouble finding people who are true friends?
• 28:10
  Randall Kaplan: What What was it about fame?
• 28:13
  Randall Kaplan: That was interesting to you and is it all is it all that it's cracked up to be? It's
• 28:19
  Sean O'Malley: a good question.
• 28:19
  Sean O'Malley: I don't know I've never really been able to sit down and figure out why I just have pretty vivid memories being a young young one and I don't know if it came for I used to be obsessed with football and I used to watch football every Sunday Monday whatever NFL total access during the week like I watched and just the the football players were famous to me and I wanted I'm like I wanted to be in the NFL so bad I don't know if that's kind of where it stemmed from I don't know if it's just that that deep insecurity of wanting to be liked I don't know where it came from but it was from a young and yeah, I don't know I don't I don't mind it's You know what's cool is seeing walk into into a store and some it's happened I've tried to be aware Oh, is it the Hotel The Room The Room The Room Service lady is walking by and she just her eyes got huge you're freaking out screaming that I was walking by screaming Oh yeah, like screaming like it was right in front of your face. Yeah. And it was just like that's pretty cool to be able to give someone that experience and again, I don't know why that's cool, but it feels good it's in your take a picture with there so that's pretty cool I guess in a sense of being famous and making people feel good but yeah sometimes paying the ass you want to go to the sprouts and you you don't want to like go to the grocery store and not think about you know being a little paranoid that because sometimes you watch anything see people's phones you people see people like but that's the worst part of my day is having to go to sprouts and get pickup pictures like this is pretty good so it's not it's not too bad. Here
• 30:01
  Randall Kaplan: we a normal life now where you're just going out and taking a stroll or going to the mall or doing doing things are the things you're not doing well
• 30:09
  Sean O'Malley: it's just normal now that isn't normal going out and like expecting it to be people there that's just normal now it was a gradual build from get side of UFC knock a couple of people out you know maybe it's one person when I go out and I was two people that was like couple people so it's just now it's normal. So it's almost more weird if I go somewhere no one says anything.
• 30:33
  Randall Kaplan: UFC is now I believe the fourth most popular sport in the world and has your recognition but that
• 30:39
  Sean O'Malley: the number one is number one sport well
• 30:41
  Randall Kaplan: I think it was statistically the number four Yeah, I think statistically I interviewed Dana White at a conference and I believe it's it's a number four sport in the world. I mean, that's that's huge. Have you seen your recognition go up as a sport has increased over the last few years?
• 30:57
  Sean O'Malley: Um, yeah, definitely. I mean, each Naco goes up more and more and more so, but yeah, definitely notice that are
• 31:03
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• 31:20
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• 31:27
  Randall Kaplan: Get your next amazing gift and order a copy of the speeches by clicking the link in our show notes. So why fight in the first place? I mean, what was what was the first punch that you threw where it actually felt good. Go back to the first street fight you had I mean, you punch was a Street Fighter? Well, I'm talking about when you hit someone in high school and got kicked out. Was that was that your first fight?
• 31:55
  Sean O'Malley: I never fought outside of that. I've never really gotten street fights. So
• 32:00
  Randall Kaplan: so the first fight you had was in a gym?
• 32:03
  Randall Kaplan: Yeah. And what was it? What I know first punch fuel I,
• 32:07
  Sean O'Malley: I never really looked at fighting illegal. It's violent. It's dangerous sport. I just kind of always looked at it as a sport. Like, it's like, I'm going to go out there and turn this dude's lights off. And the most non violent way think, put him put him asleep and the fight. You know, it's just like, it's always been chess. To me, it's always been a violent game of chess. It's never been like, aggressive fight. Like, I want to hurt this guy. Because I don't like it has never really been like that, to me. It's always more of like a sport, who's gonna go out there and who's gonna win? And that's what it's always been to me. So
• 32:42
  Randall Kaplan: I think a lot of people don't know how you go from your first fight to where you are today and how many it takes to get there. So Can Can you walk people through the very beginning? And who has to be in your corner and say, okay, sugar is gonna get the next fight.
• 32:56
  Randall Kaplan: He's gonna get a big fight. He's moving up on on the card. Up until the main event. Yeah,
• 33:03
  Sean O'Malley: I mean, I feel like I've done a good job of managing my career in that aspect from getting signed to UFC and kind of navigating that and dealing with Hunter Dana directly.
• 33:12
  Randall Kaplan: What year was that? So take us back to the beginning. Cuz I think there's a lot of people who don't know and I think there's a bunch of people who are not UFC fans right now who are listening and watching the show.
• 33:23
  Sean O'Malley: So I'd say I turned pro Pro, one years old, something like that. racked up, five or six wins kind of fighting in Malta and I'd fight month go back to Montana fight pro fights. They weren't the hardest profiles. It was just like I was trying to get a good record. I think it was five no six, no, knockout this dude in North Dakota, then I get this big fight in LFA phi, which is a bigger organization. It's a good feeder into the UFC. I believe it was six and all at the time.
• 33:52
  Sean O'Malley: And Dana White's contender series was the new thing and it was about to err next year in a couple months or whatever. And I knew if I go out there put on a put on a show, I thought this guy named David nguzo. But if I go out there and knock this dude out, I pretty much guarantee I can get on some like 606 finishes, whatever my record was. I had a good record. Go out there and knock this dude out and just split one of my favorite knockouts still throw a throw a head kick into a spinning kick. knock them out.
• 34:17
  Sean O'Malley: It goes viral ish on YouTube.
• 34:21
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah. Yeah, first viral knockout. So then they offer me a fight on the contender series Snoop Dogg's commentating Yeah, and that was that was a big deal having Snoop Dogg commentate him going oh Valley just like 30 times in a row. He went crazy went crazy posting me on his Instagram which blew up my Instagram which made me like oh, like kind of get addicted like the likes and stuff but oh shit.
• 34:44
  Sean O'Malley: I can get a good following from this. And so that's how that happened. got signed to UFC knocked out that dude went hung out with Snoop smoked with Snoop. Snoop for a little bit big, like a cigar around blunts and cross eyed about five minutes in walk it out of there like I feel like I'm gonna movie just knock this dude out. Just outside of the UFC. Just smoke with Snoop 2122 years old. And so yeah, I think that was like a June or July and then I you know booked my first fight December 1 in Vegas and I don't know The Contender series is my first fight in Vegas then my next fight was December 1 Which my first UFC fight in Vegas Yeah, when that one didn't didn't win by knockout or anything one of the decision was still very entertaining fight one of my favorite fights myself to go back and watch because it was so entertaining. And there's a lot of flashy things that happened.
• 35:38
  Sean O'Malley: One that book book my next fight and in Vegas again, this one's on a pay per view now. I fought a kid him Andrei soccer. I called them under soccer mo knows forget his real name, but I thought it's getting Andre I broke my foot in the third round with three minutes left tore the list Fronk it's the ligaments on top my foot and others three minutes left and was clearly hurt clearly like, couldn't walk on my couldn't even stand on it.
• 36:06
  Sean O'Malley: He took me down. Thankfully, I don't know why he still
• 36:10
  Randall Kaplan: want one hop, now you're
• 36:12
  Sean O'Malley: punching him in the face. He sent him up, he took me down. And thankfully he did cuz I couldn't. I couldn't use that foot. But yeah, that was kind of and then after that fight, I feel like I gained quite a bit of popularity because the whole Rogan was interviewing me interviewing me on the ground laying there. The fight was entertaining broke my foot. But uh, yeah, that's kind of got the ball rolling.
• 36:36
  Randall Kaplan: So you're hanging out with Snoop, you're smoking. You wake up the next day. And are you saying to yourself, Man, I am living my dream. This is so fucking cool.
• 36:45
  Randall Kaplan: What's next?
• 36:47
  Sean O'Malley: I think at that time, you know, I still live in an apartment. And were in Glendale, Arizona.
• 36:56
  Randall Kaplan: And what are we paying rent? Do
• 36:57
  Sean O'Malley: you remember?
• 36:57
  Sean O'Malley: Like 800 bucks?
• 36:59
  Randall Kaplan: And what do you get? What do you get for the fight? How much do you pay?
• 37:01
  Randall Kaplan: 10,000?
• 37:03
  Sean O'Malley: I think for that one, or No? was a 5000 is 5005 or 10,000. I don't remember. But I remember after my first time I think it was like 10 and 10. You get 20,000 You pay pay the gym pay whatever it ends up not being a ton but with that money.
• 37:19
  Sean O'Malley: I bought it I'm like, well, let's put a down payment on a house and like move into like nice little shitty house. And that was my first house I bought but it was yeah, that was a cool experience because you're not really making money fighting until you even once you get the UFC like the little the first half cup fights and I'm making a lot of money, especially with taxes. hate taxes. I've had to pay a lot this year was depressing.
• 37:42
  Randall Kaplan: Makes makes our world go on. We live in the greatest country on Earth. So we pay for our freedom. Yes, I
• 37:45
  Sean O'Malley: agree. And that's always a good perspective. And good reminder. I still want a shitty dirt road though. That sucks. But
• 37:52
  Randall Kaplan: that's your choice. I'm pretty sure you could buy whatever house you want at this point. Um,
• 37:55
  Sean O'Malley: yeah, obviously it was cool to make money for the first like actually make money fighting this. It still blows my mind to be honest.
• 38:02
  Randall Kaplan: So does Dana way control the destiny, your destiny and the destiny of your fighters who's picking the fights? And how are they doing?
• 38:09
  Randall Kaplan: It is Dana saying, Man Sean is going to be a superstar. So I want to make sure he keeps advancing his career. And then when someone loses, they're going down on the on the pole a little bit not getting the best fights. Yeah. I
• 38:25
  Sean O'Malley: mean, that would be more of a question for Dana and Sean Shelby, and, you know, Hunter, those guys kind of navigate. You know how the UFC runs, I accept fights and
• 38:35
  Randall Kaplan: Jada loves you.
• 38:35
  Randall Kaplan: By the way. I spent some time with him last night and he says manager the next big thing.
• 38:40
  Randall Kaplan: Yeah,
• 38:40
  Sean O'Malley: I mean, he's not wrong. I think UFC is, you know, their their business, their fight business, but ultimately, their business. They want to make money and they know how, you know, Dana saw when he saw me fight out Friday. He said I have that thing. And that Id thing. And here we are. What still 2017 So, you know, champ now. So whatever, whatever they did worked. I'm here. I won the fight that I needed to win. And yeah, I do believe them the next big day.
• 39:11
  Randall Kaplan: He believes it too. I interviewed Dana, who's telling me the story of Conor McGregor and Connor met the Fertitta brothers first and I said Hey, Dana, man, you got to talk to this guy. Or I think it was the other way around. I'm not sure and you know, the guy was very flamboyant. Said he's gonna be the champ definitely wasn't a champ back then. But But how much is your being flamboyant, the purple hair, the cat's everywhere? How much does that contributed to your success?
• 39:40
  Sean O'Malley: I'm probably a little bit I get I guess. I think what it comes down to is if you go just watch my highlights from when I got into USC even before, like, I'm fun to watch. I'm entertaining. I'm knocking people out in spectacular fashion. It doesn't matter what color my hair is or my you know, kind of car I drive to face tattoos. Like none of that matters. Not knocking people out. And people look past that people look like oh, you're you popular you're famous.
• 40:08
  Sean O'Malley: You're the champ because you have crazy hair UFC wants you to be champ like no I just knocked out alginate Sterling the greatest bedwin of all time I fought Peter Yan BPDU on the fight before that, like that's why I'm the champ but as far as like taking it to the next level, I think I think that you know the hair in the all that extra stuff definitely plays a role people want to see characters people want to see.
• 40:29
  Sean O'Malley: See, you know, that you know are always a human would want to see see characters and that's what I think that I've done a good job doing.
• 40:38
  Randall Kaplan: Conor McGregor, the most famous UFC fighter ever. And people are saying you're the next camera, Gregor.
• 40:44
  Randall Kaplan: Yeah. How's that feel?
• 40:47
  Sean O'Malley: It's funny. It's like people will say that in like a negative way. Most people
• 40:50
  Randall Kaplan: like you. I'm saying in a very positive Because I think it's cool. Yeah,
• 40:54
  Sean O'Malley: but it's fun. I do get that a lot. You're want to be Connor like, yeah. How much did he make? Yeah, okay.
• 41:00
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah,
• 41:00
  Randall Kaplan: I think he made$30 million for his fight with Floyd Mayweather. Yeah, Floyd made, I think 80 or $100 million. Yeah.
• 41:08
  Sean O'Malley: So in that sense, yeah, I can only be that Conor.
• 41:10
  Sean O'Malley: I also want to, it's hard when you get that famous that much money. It's like this day that active I'd like to stay active.
• 41:16
  Sean O'Malley: I'd like to continue to fight a lot. But as far as like people asking me if I think I'm the biggest star in the UFC right now, and I don't really know how to answer that. I think UFC would know, analytically, like real the real numbers, who is the biggest star? I don't know.
• 41:30
  Sean O'Malley: I would say I'm definitely up there. But as when it comes to potential who has the potential to be the biggest star ever? I'm definitely the number one guy I believe I could be way bigger than Connor. And just because Connor has fought so long, he like pre COVID 2000 No, 20 whatever it was. The UFC grew for almost 50% They almost you know, I think Dana seems like 48% and a couple of years the UFC grew because of COVID. Like that's, that's my prime. That's where I'm knocking people out.
• 42:01
  Sean O'Malley: That's where I'm you know, on the rise right now. I'm the champ right now. So I have so much more people to be seen by.
• 42:06
  Sean O'Malley: So that's the only reason I say that. I could be way bigger than Connors because there's more people watching the sport right now.
• 42:14
  Randall Kaplan: You feel a pressure that people are putting on you? Not really,
• 42:17
  Sean O'Malley: I never I don't really feel that pressure. To be honest. I don't really put that much pressure on myself but just kind of like like if this was all gone tomorrow. Do I have the skills to be happy? Like I believe I do. I think you know it'd be a different pace of life or change your life this all went away tomorrow could didn't fight anymore. I retired. No one gives a fuck about me anymore because I don't fight which is real thing like you quit fighting once you're done. It's like these people start to lose interest in you, you know, you're not getting the brand deal. You're not the next big thing. Could I still do I still know how to be happy and I think happiness is a skill. And I feel like I could definitely you know figure that out and be okay, so I don't really put that much pressure on myself like this is the only way like I can make it let's talk about your
• 43:05
  Randall Kaplan: nickname. Where did it come from? And people walk up to you on the street and call you Sean sugar
• 43:12
  Sean O'Malley: with a lot of people call well not as much anymore but I first started coming up with always sugar shame Snoop still calls me sugar Shane. Shane Mosley is like people saying just kind of rolls but yeah, sugar came from Johnny Idaho who was like one of my first coaches in Montana. And he said I was just so sweet to watch. So he gave me the nickname sugar. I kind of took the are off and went more with sugar. But yes, Sugar was kinda like the first one. He said it's so sweet to watch.
• 43:39
  Randall Kaplan: One of the things that has made me successful over the years somebody called extreme preparation, something I've been teaching and coaching for 20 years. So when someone prep for something for one hour, I'm 3040 50 I know extreme preparation has been a huge part of your success. Can you explain exactly what that means to and how preparation is so important to being the champ? Yeah,
• 43:59
  Sean O'Malley: for me, it's like I wouldn't take a short notice fight like I don't know, I don't know how like a specific date or weeks but I would I like to have 12 weeks 12 weeks is that which is ironically like 12 weeks from fires today.
• 44:12
  Randall Kaplan: And what's your next fight to tell people out there March night Miami?
• 44:16
  Sean O'Malley: Yeah, preparations. Cheeto. Yep, rematch. That's gonna be a big one. But preparation for me is you know, as I like to break down little blocks, four week blocks, you know, 12 844 to fight like I have, you know, gradually pick up the pace. The discipline, the can't be too extremely disciplined this far out, right. And I'm talking dialed in zero distractions too far out. It's a balancing game, you got to balance it. So I feel like I've done a very good job balancing that and really figuring out what to do in those 12 weeks. So yeah, I I like to have a good amount of time to get my mind right to get physically in shape fighting the most exhausting sport in the world. I'm the champ now. So I'm doing five five minute rounds.
• 45:04
  Sean O'Malley: Am I doing three minutes or three fives I'm doing five fives. And I gotta train like the fights gonna go five five, just very well could go 25 minutes with Cheetos. Very, very, very durable, very tough.
• 45:16
  Sean O'Malley: very slow, very ugly, but he's good. So you know I got to be prepared to go 25 minutes