Sean O’Malley’s journey to Japan left fairly an impression on him.
This week, O’Malley was a visitor fighter in attendance for RIZIN 49, the promotion’s conventional New 12 months’s Eve present at Saitama Tremendous Area in Saitama, Japan. It was O’Malley’s first time participating within the annual extravaganza and in a media scrum after the occasion, “Suga” declared his curiosity in returning quickly.
“The manufacturing of the present was unimaginable, the power within the area was unimaginable, the ring women are unimaginable,” O’Malley mentioned. “General impression of Japan, this has been essentially the most enjoyable journey I’ve ever been on and I’d love to return again.”
Saitama Tremendous Area is without doubt one of the most iconic venues in MMA, having hosted a lot of the largest occasions in Satisfaction FC historical past, and the yearly New 12 months’s Eve present. As such, the sector has a particular place in MMA lore and now, having skilled it first hand, O’Malley hopes to at some point be capable of be a part of the listing of fighters who’ve competed there.
“Proper now, clearly, I’m with the UFC,” O’Malley mentioned. “I plan to be with the UFC ceaselessly, so if the UFC comes right here some day, I’d like to battle on this area. There’s power right here.”
The UFC has been to Japan 9 instances total, with 5 of these occasions happening at Saitama, however the promotion hasn’t returned since a Struggle Night time occasion in 2017. Nevertheless, White seems to have relationship with RIZIN president Nobuyuki Sakakibara, with the 2 not too long ago attending UFC 310 collectively to observe former RIZIN champion Kai Asakura problem Alexandre Pantoja, and not too long ago advised the promotion could also be concentrating on a return within the close to future.
But when the UFC does return to Japan and O’Malley has the prospect to battle there, he has one situation: he’s sticking to the UFC guidelines, not PRIDE guidelines.
“I seen after I went in there, the ring is so much softer than the UFC,” O’Malley mentioned, evaluating the promotional rulesets. “The UFC platform is thinner. That might be a little bit bit totally different. The ruleset, for me, I really feel prefer it advantages me extra not with the ability to get kicked within the head as a result of I’m the one above somebody. If I get taken down I’m normally on my again. So that will in all probability not be pretty much as good for me. However it could be attention-grabbing.”
