Sean O'Malley comes clean on owls potentially influencing his life, recalls seeing dead one before Merab Dvalishvili title loss

Sean O'Malley recently opened up about strange experiences involving owls that seemingly shadow important moments in his career.

The UFC bantamweight star first felt a connection with the bird before his fight with Petr Yan in 2022. Thereafter, owls began appearing around his home frequently, and he started reading through the signs.

However, the omen turned grim ahead of UFC 306, and O'Malley admitted the sight rattled him. Just ten days before his title defense against Merab Dvalishvili, a dead owl appeared in his driveway. The fight ended in a unanimous decision loss, costing him the bantamweight belt.

Sharing his thoughts in a recent episode of the FULL SEND PODCAST, O'Malley said:

"I randomly got an owl tattoo on my chest. It was the first Petr Yan fight. I sat outside, watched the sunset, and an owl came and flew and sat on the branch by me. I was so scared to look up. I have a bunch of owls that live in the trees around me. Ten days before the Merab fight, there was a dead owl in my driveway, and I was like, that can’t be good."

Check out Sean O'Malley's comments below:

The defeat against Dvalishvili brought his record to 18–2 (1), snapping a three-fight win streak that included a knockout victory over Aljamain Sterling and a dominant showing against Marlon Vera. O'Malley, meanwhile, is gearing up to take on the Georgian fighter again in a rematch at UFC 316.

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Sean O’Malley accepts he may never eclipse Conor McGregor’s stardom

Sean O’Malley once believed he would outshine Conor McGregor as the UFC’s biggest superstar. Over the years, O’Malley built a massive fanbase with his fighting style and personality.

However, after losing to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306, O’Malley is reassessing. Ahead of their rematch at UFC 316, he admits McGregor’s global impact may be untouchable.

Speaking in the aforementioned podcast episode, O'Malley said:

“I always kinda put myself, ‘I wanna be as big as Conor... I wanna do that [but] it’s like, I don’t think I could be as big as Conor. He’s just a once in a lifetime [personality]]. Conor, like to me, was not necessarily [just a fighter]. Obviously, his skill set is really high, but when it just comes to all around like entertainment, it’s Conor [at the top] right now.”