Conor McGregor is still on the lips of all MMA lovers despite being inactive since 2021. One of the last to have discussions about him was Chael Sonnen, the UFC Hall of Famer and pundit, who is known for his blunt statements and keen observation of the sport. A few days ago, Sonnen made a comparison between McGregor and current UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley. He shared that, according to him, Conor McGregor is not the biggest mixed martial arts star at the moment.

Regardless, UFC President Dana White has now come up in defense of his top star. White revealed his thoughts about the comparison in the press conference for the much-awaited UFC 306 event. He stated the superiority of Conor McGregor as a fighter is his ability to grab everyone’s attention. Something that O’Malley too possesses at the moment! However, he has yet to establish himself by winning more fights.

White conveyed, “He’s right there anyway. These are the…when you talk about Conor’s personality and all the things that make Conor McGregor Conor McGregor right, the one thing that Conor McGregor always did was he delivered on the big fights. When the big fights happen everybody said he couldn’t wrestle, everybody said he couldn’t do this and that. He went out and delivered every single time.” He further revealed how he had conversations with Kevin Iole about how Anderson Silva kept on winning fights, something that established him as the best in the promotion.

An ability that McGregor has as he has proven time and again by winning the big fight, or at least showcasing his prowess in all forms of MMA. Something that O’Malley too can do with the way he is dominating his opponents in the Octagon. White said, “You know what Anderson Silva did to make people care about him? He kept winning. You know, in this sport, when you have what Sean O’Malley has and you can go out and win the big fights, and O’Malley’s a smart kid like Conor too. He gets it. I don’t know if you saw him on first take today, but he gets it.”

Although the Irishman is responsible for 8 of the 10 most lucrative pay-per-views in the history of the promotion and is undeniably one of the biggest names in MMA history, it has been more than three years since he last stepped foot in the octagon. “The Notorious” was set to return to UFC 303 in June. However, a fractured pinky toe forced him to pull out of the fight. A new date for his planned confrontation with Michael Chandler has not yet been announced. Something that contributed to Sonnen’s beliefs that the Notorious has finally been dethroned.

Chael Sonnen calls O’Malley the biggest superstar

For Chael Sonnen, the new superstar is Sean O’Malley. Before O’Malley won his first UFC title with a second-round TKO over Aljamain Sterling, ‘The American Gangster’ called him a “rising star.” Today, Sonnen says there has been a clear generational change, whether McGregor likes it or not.

On his YouTube channel, Sonner said, “O’Malley is the biggest star in our sport right now, And ‘red panty night’ is still real. Conor’s not in the sport; he’s not even licensed. Conor could not walk in and fight tonight if he wanted to. I’m just sharing with you who’s in the sport; it’s one of those things. Conor has no more of a claim to this sport right now than [Georges] St-Pierre or Khabib [Nurmagomedov]. In fact, St-Pierre and Khabib have attended more UFCs in the last year than Conor.”

O’Malley now goes head to head against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306 on September 14 to defend his bantamweight title. A win would surely strengthen the point made by White regarding O’Malley winning fights to prove himself as the best. Following in the footsteps of Anderson Silva and the Notorious McGregor. However, it isn’t as easy as it always seems. What do you think? Is O’Malley really the biggest star in the UFC right now? Let us know in the comments.