Sean O’Malley recently recalled the journey that led to him crossing paths with longtime friend and coach Tim Welch.
While always a standout athlete, O’Malley walked away from college football due to his skinny stature and a general disregard for authority. It was one of O’Malley’s classmates’ fathers — who was a boxing coach — that introduced “Sugar” to combat sports.
O’Malley found early success in his amateur career before suffering his first loss, which he absolutely hated. The Montana native then decided to leave his hometown to make a career out of MMA. O’Malley worked for a year at a home for mentally-challenged adults, to save up the money for the move. O’Malley paid off the loan on his Nissan Ultima, and with $2,000 more to his name, drove down to Arizona.
“I knew I could not go pro and make a living or get to where I wanted to get to living in Montana,” O’Malley said on his YouTube channel. “I saved up $2,000. I worked at Spring Meadow Resources: It was a group home for eight mentally disabled adults. [It was] their house and we would just go help them with chores. I drove the bus, I drove them to work, bumping f—-ing Radiohead, had a little speaker talking. Basically a stand-up comedian driving around, talking with them, take them into the store, help them find their groceries and stuff. But I worked there for probably about a year, I saved up $2,000, I paid off my 2006 Nissan Ultima, paid that off so I wouldn’t have any bills. Saved up $2,000 and drove down to Arizona.”
O’Malley first saw Welch fighting on a Bellator MMA card and was surprised to learn that he is also from Montana. Later, when O’Malley was fighting in Great Falls, where Welch lives, the latter was on commentary duty cageside. O’Malley pulled off an armbar submission win against a wrestler, which left Welch impressed. At the afterparty, Welch invited O’Malley to try out training with him at the MMA Lab in Arizona for a week.
UFC 306: O’Malley vs. Dvalishvili Saturday at 10 ET on ESPN+. Order Now!
“I was downstairs in my living room and Bellator was on. And I see this guy Tim Welch from Montana,” O’Malley recalled. “I was like what the f—k? Montana! That’s crazy. If someone’s on TV I thought they were famous no matter what. I fight in Great Falls where Tim’s from, and I fight this college wrestler. Outside Tim’s commentating. This wrestler takes me down, he’s beating my ass. I roll for a nice armbar… I’m popping his elbow, he tapped. I win, I’m on cloud 7,000…So after the afterparty, Tim’s like, ‘Yo I offer this to people, not a lot of people take it. But you’re more than welcome to come down and check out The MMA Lab and try it out.”
O’Malley obliged, training with Welch for a week while also living on his uncomfortable futon bed. The UFC bantamweight champ admits getting humbled in training everyday in what he remembers as one of the worst yet best experiences of his life.
“I stayed on his couch, his futon, uncomfortable ass futon, for seven days. One of the worst but best experiences I have ever had,” O’Malley said. “I get my ass kicked very, very badly every single day I went to the gym and I was smoked.”
This gave birth to a friendship which has stood the test of time and played a huge role in O’Malley’s rise to stardom. Welch notes that unlike other coaches who train multiple athletes, all his attention is focused on his friend O’Malley. The former Bellator fighter will look to coach his friend to another successful title defense against Merab Dvalishvili (17-4) at UFC 306 on Saturday at the Sphere in Las Vegas.
