O'Malley admits he should have backed Hokit during chaotic UFC White House press conference

Sean O’Malley has admitted he made a mistake by staying silent during the chaotic UFC White House press conference on June 14, when Josh Hokit nearly sparked a brawl with Alex Pereira and Ilia Topuria while O’Malley sat motionless between all three fighters.

Hokit, known for his confrontational style, directed a string of insults at Pereira — who speaks limited English and appeared not to fully understand what was being said — before Topuria intervened and threw an object at Hokit. UFC security removed Hokit from the stage before the situation escalated further. Throughout the entire exchange, O’Malley remained seated and expressionless.

Hokit later called out O’Malley on social media for not backing him up. “Imagine having the opportunity of a lifetime, set up by me perfectly to back your fellow American and call your shot but the moment passes you by because you are simply ‘too cool,’” Hokit wrote on Twitter. “We’ll all be on our death bed one day… hopefully he doesn’t regret that.”

O’Malley, who swore off social media a couple of years ago, told MMA Fighting he never saw the post — but once made aware of it, he agreed with Hokit’s assessment.

“Dammit, I’m not on social so I don’t see anything,” O’Malley said. “I know that whole moment went viral and I didn’t see Hokit saying that. Yeah, maybe I should have. When you’re that close to Alex Pereira, you don’t really think like ‘I might talk some shit.’ I’m like I’m going to sit here and f*cking shut up.”

He added: “But you know what, he’s not wrong. I should have been on Team Hokit. He’s absolutely right. Maybe I should have stepped back a few feet and got behind him and then started talking shit.”

O’Malley said his reasoning in the moment was that staying still and silent would itself be a funny image — and he acknowledged it played out that way. But he now accepts he let a genuine opportunity slip.

“I f*cked up,” O’Malley said. “I think what went through my mind, if I don’t do anything and I just sit here still, it would look hilarious. That was kind of my thought process and it worked out that way. But Hokit was right. I could have spoke up and said something. Nothing comes to mind but I could have spoke up.”

The missed moment may carry more significance than just a lost laugh. O’Malley has previously called out Topuria and floated a potential move up to featherweight, meaning a vocal confrontation at the presser could have helped build toward a future matchup with the Georgian champion.