I think O Malley has star potential. That doesn't mean he's a star yet though.
People still aren't really sold on him, he's had a close decision against Yan, proving he's legit, but still, not necessarily head and shoulders above the rest of the division.
Great win over Aljo, then a win over Chito. He looked great against Chito and it was probably important to run that one back for the sake of fixing the only loss on his record sooner than later.
But, he really hasn't been around long enough to have genuine star power, that takes time to build.
I don't think stardom is like Conor, where you're just an instant hit, especially when you aren't some charismatic, shit talking god.
A lot of guys that became big draws took time to get to that level. It doesn't just happen over night. Even GSP, Jones, Chuck, Hughes, etc.
The potential is there though, the UFC has the metrics, trajectory of numbers and all that stuff, and they believe in his potential enough to have him on the first sphere card.
Presumably, this is the type of event that can truly propel someone into stardom, so, they're putting some cards down on OMalley to utilize that slot and gain some traction.
I think he needs some bigger wins / fights to really be on the level, something that truly places him ahead of the division, the Merab fight could very well be it, but only time will tell.
(Where is the Dom SMH emoji?)
