VaynerSports has signed rising UFC star Sean O’Malley for full representation. The talent agency co-founded by brothers Gary and AJ Vaynerchuk has been particularly active since bursting into the MMA management circle last July. Lloyd Pierson heads the management’s MMA division which has already contracted former and current champions and Hall of Famers, including Stipe Miocic, Tony Ferguson, Eddie Alvarez, Vitor Belfort, Urijah Faber, and Curtis Blaydes.
“Sugar” Sean O’Malley was quickly entrenching himself as a serious contender in the UFC’s Bantamweight division before his latest and only career loss to Marlon Vera. O’Malley suffered a lower leg injury in the early minutes of the first round, and Vera capitalized and ultimately won via TKO later in the same round. Prior to the first loss of his professional career, Sugar Sean was 12-0 and was seemingly cruising through the ranks of his division. He was coming off of a controversial suspension due to a failed drug test but rebounded by securing two first-round victories in four months last year. It’s worthy to note he won both bouts in such spectacular fashion to earn himself a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus in each respective fight. O’Malley is scheduled to face Thomas Almeida on March 27 at UFC 260, where he’ll look to improve upon his current 12-1 record and regain his traction in his pursuit of the Bantamweight belt.
VaynerSports has made its reputation as a management company that takes nontraditional approaches to the standard agency model. Their strategy has served them well in football, baseball, and gaming, and their success will expectedly continue as they expand to different sports divisions. MMA and combat sports athletes, aside from the world champions, depend on marketing and branding to secure sponsorships as a way of producing a profitable career. Sugar Sean O’Malley has an extremely marketable personality to tag along with his exceptional skills in the octagon. The potential to make O’Malley one of the most notable faces in the UFC is there, just waiting to be exploited by experts such as those at VaynerSports.