Sean O’Malley set to return at UFC 276 in July against Pedro Munhoz

UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley has his next assignment. ‘Suga’ is set to face Pedro Munhoz this summer at UFC 276.

The fight was broken by Brett Okamoto and ESPN MMA earlier today. The bout announcement comes just hours after the matchup was leaked as a part of the UFC’s internal schedule. The bout joins a card without the main event, but not lacking in star power.

UFC 276 has bouts scheduled for the card such as Robbie Lawler vs. Bryan Barberena, and Miesha Tate’s flyweight debut against Lauren Murphy. The card also features a middleweight contender bout between Sean Strickland and Alex Pereira. The event now gets another massive boost in terms of name value, as it adds O’Malley and Munhoz.

The bout is expected to be the biggest test of Sean O’Malley’s career to date. The 15-1 bantamweight was last seen in the octagon against Raulian Paiva at UFC 269 in December 2021. ‘Sugar’ picked up a big first-round knockout victory over the Team Alpha Male product.

Following his bout with Paiva, O’Malley stated that he would only take a step up in competition if he gets a better contract. It seems that the 27-year-old must’ve had some sort of negotiations with the UFC, as he’s now going to be fighting a top-10 fighter for the first time in his young career.

Pedro Munhoz, on the other hand, comes into the contest badly needing a win. While the Brazilian is still ranked No.10 in the 135-pound rankings, he’s lost four of his last five contests. Munhoz’s last outing came on the same card as O’Malley’s fight with Paiva. However, unlike ‘Sugar’, the 35-year-old lost via unanimous decision victory against Dominick Cruz.

Dominick Cruz defeats Pedro Munhoz at UFC 269

What do you think about Sean O’Malley taking on Pedro Munhoz? Who are you picking in the bantamweight matchup?