Sean O’Malley News

Adam D Martin - June 29, 2021

UFC bantamweight star Sean O’Malley is in need of a new opponent after Louis Smolka withdrew from their scheduled upcoming bout at UFC 264. O’Malley and Smolka were set to meet on the main card of UFC 264, which is scheduled to take place on July 10 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. However, the fight is now off, according to MMA journalist Ariel Helwani. He confirmed the news that Smolka has withdrawn from the fight following a cryptic tweet from O’Malley suggesting a change.

Cole Shelton - June 21, 2021

Sean O’Malley didn’t think Marlon Vera looked all that good on Saturday night against Davey Grant. Vera returned at UFC Vegas 29 on the main card to rematch Grant in an anticipated bout. Ultimately, it was “Chito” who got his hand raised winning a clear-cut decision as he battered Grant for the final two rounds. Yet, for O’Malley, he says he didn’t think Vera looked that impressive.

Chris Taylor - June 18, 2021

Father Cejudo, also known as Henry Cejudo, decided to roast his “children” on Friday, this after Sean O’Malley, Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling exchanged shots online. Earlier this afternoon, former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan fired back at Aljamain Sterling over his comments regarding the “Unified Rules” of MMA.

Adam D Martin - June 18, 2021

Petr Yan blasted Sean O’Malley over one of his previous MMA fights, asking “did Suga poodle teach Alja his acting skills?” Yan was the UFC bantamweight champion but he lost it back at UFC 259 earlier this year when he struck Aljamain Sterling with an illegal knee that ended the fight. Ever since that night, Yan has taken to social media to troll Sterling over accepting the DQ victory in their match. There is no love lost between Yan and Sterling and the hope is that these two meet sometime later this year in a high-profile rematch with the UFC bantamweight on the line, the same division that O’Malley — one of the UFC’s biggest stars at 135 — competes at.

Adam D Martin - May 3, 2021

UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley will return to the Octagon on July 10 at UFC 264 when he faces off against Louis Smolka. MMA journalist Ryan Frederick was the first to report the O’Malley vs. Smolka fight, which will take place on the Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor III undercard at UFC 264. Multiple sources have indicated to BJPenn.com that this booking is accurate and will take place.

Christopher Taylor - April 14, 2021

Henry Cejudo was not happy that Sean O’Malley referenced him in a “short joke” during his recent exchange with Petr Yan on social media. O’Malley (13-1 MMA) has been trying to lockdown a big fight ever since scoring a third round knockout victory over Thomas Almeida last month at UFC 260.

Adam Martin - April 13, 2021

UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley called out Petr Yan, asking him if you “wanna beat me up while you wait for your rematch?” Yan was widely expected to fight UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling in a rematch next, but the fight isn’t happening anytime soon after the new champ opted to get neck surgery. That means Sterling will be on the shelf until later this summer or fall, optimistically, which means that Yan may opt to take another fight in the meantime. Though it’s unlikely the UFC would strip Sterling of his title, it’s possible the promotion could opt to introduce an interim title. Either way, it does seem likely that Yan will fight someone else in the meantime. And if that’s the case, O’Malley wants it to be him.

Adam D Martin - April 13, 2021

UFC bantamweight contender Marlon Vera claims that he accepted a rematch with Sean O’Malley but his rival didn’t want to take the fight. Vera and O’Malley met last summer at UFC 252. O’Malley came into the fight with an unbeaten record, but early on in the first round, he suffered an ankle injury that caused him to lose his footing and fall to the mat, where Vera finished him with strikes. Since then, O’Malley has returned to the cage with a brilliant TKO win over Thomas Almeida, while Vera lost a unanimous decision to Jose Aldo in his last outing. With Vera and O’Malley battling it out for the No. 15 ranking in the UFC bantamweight division, a rematch makes sense.

Adam D Martin - April 5, 2021

UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling praised fellow divisional rival Sean O’Malley, suggesting that “Suga” is “the real deal.” Sterling is coming off of his title fight DQ win over Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259 last month, a victory that saw him crowned the new champion at 135lbs. While Sterling appears poised for a rematch with his rival Petr Yan sometime later this year, he’s obviously still very aware of what else is going on in his division, and one of the fighters he’s keeping a close eye on is O’Malley. Coming off of an incredible KO win over Thomas Almeida at UFC 260, O’Malley appears poised to breakout in 2021 provided he can stay healthy. What O’Malley did against Almeida hasn’t gone unnoticed by anyone, namely the champion himself.

Cole Shelton - March 31, 2021

Dominick Cruz didn’t ask for the Sean O’Malley fight after all. At the UFC 260 post-fight show, Chael Sonnen said Cruz texted him that he wanted the O’Malley fight. It immediately caught the attention of many UFC fans who became interested in the fight. O’Malley also was interested in the fight, but according to the former UFC bantamweight champion, he never even called for the scrap.

Cole Shelton - March 30, 2021

Marlon Vera appears open to rematching Sean O’Malley. At UFC 252 last August, Vera and O’Malley met in a very intriguing fight. Early on, “Suga” was having success landing some strikes but Vera then landed some leg kicks that changed the entire fight. He caused O’Malley to have ‘drop foot’ and he kept on rolling his ankles and Vera eventually got on top of him, and ground and pounded him out to earn a first-round TKO.

Cole Shelton - March 29, 2021

Sean O’Malley is interested in fighting Dominick Cruz next. After O’Malley scored a third-round TKO win over Thomas Almeida at UFC 260, Cruz reportedly texted Chael Sonnen to say he is interested in a fight with ‘Sugar’. It is a matchup that makes sense and would be a very fun stylistic fight. For O’Malley, he says if the fight happens, he wants it to be the co-main event to Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor 3 in July.

Adam Martin - March 29, 2021

UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley was praised by UFC president Dana White for his “masterpiece” of a performance at UFC 260. O’Malley put on another fantastic performance as he finished Thomas Almeida in the third round with punches to bounce back from a TKO loss to Chito Vera in his last fight. O’Malley hurt Almeida badly in the first round with strikes only for his opponent to somehow get up and stay in the fight. However, O’Malley continued to pepper Almeida with shots until eventually taking him out in the third round with an “unnecessary” knockout blow.

Adam D Martin - March 29, 2021

A new camera angle shows just how brutal Sean O’Malley’s “unnecessary” final punch on Thomas Almeida was during their UFC 260 fight. O’Malley took on Almeida in a highly-anticipated bantamweight bout between two strikers on the UFC 260 pay-per-view card. In the first round, O’Malley knocked Almeida down along the fence with strikes but he walked away and somehow the Brazilian was able to recover and survive. In the third round, however, O’Malley was able to knock Almeida down again and this time, he didn’t let him off the hook. After dropping his opponent to the canvas, O’Malley landed an absolutely brutal hammer fist that put his lights out completely.

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

Former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz is interested in stepping into the Octagon to fight Sean O’Malley, according to Chael Sonnen. O’Malley knocked out Thomas Almeida in brutal fashion in the third round of their UFC 260 main card fight, and it was the kind of high-profile win on a big card that will surely get him the attention of the top-15 fighters at 135lbs. One of those fighters is apparently Cruz, the longtime UFC bantamweight kingpin who recently defeated Casey Kenney via split decision at UFC 259. Kenney is a teammate of O’Malley at The MMA LAB and it looks like Cruz is now interesting in fighting his teammate O’Malley in what would be a terrific scrap.

Cole Shelton - March 28, 2021

Sean O’Malley was planning on a viral knockout against Thomas Almeida at UFC 260, but he isn’t so sure he got that. O’Malley was looking to return to the win column against Almeida and early on, he was having his way with the Brazilian. He was landing heavy shots and nearly finished him in the first round.

Chris Taylor - March 27, 2021

A bantamweight bout between Sean O’Malley and Thomas Almeida takes place on the main card of tonight’s UFC 260: ‘Miocic vs. Ngannou 2’ event. O’Malley (12-1 MMA) will be returning to the Octagon for the first time since suffering a first round TKO loss to Marlon Vera at UFC 252. That setback served as the first of O’Malley’s career, but he hasn’t really accepted it as such.

Chris Taylor - March 26, 2021

Thomas Almeida can’t help but question the credibility of his UFC 260 opponent Sean O’Malley because ‘Sugar’ believes he is still undefeated. Almeida (22-4 MMA) and O’Malley (12-1 MMA) are set to collide in a bantamweight bout on the main card of tomorrow night’s pay-per-view event in Las Vegas.