5 logical opponents for Sean O'Malley after UFC 269 win
Sean O’Malley is one of the most popular and exciting fighters on the UFC roster. His unorthodox style, all-action approach and impenetrable confidence has made him a huge star since breaking onto the scene on Dana White's Contender Series four years ago.
O’Malley fought three times in 2020 and just as many times in 2021. If he maintains the same level of activity next year, the popular bantamweight could potentially be fighting for a title in the near future.
Does Sean O’Malley have the KO of the year thus far? #UFC
https://t.co/ETLF2f12gy
Sean O’Malley, who was unranked in the bantamweight division until UFC 269, has been slow-playing his career so far. The American has stated on numerous occasions that he is happy to fight unranked opponents considering how much he's earning per fight, and that he will take on higher-caliber opponents if he’s paid more.
Since his return from suspension in March 2020, he has gone 5-1 at 135 lbs. Following his most recent win over Raulian Paiva at UFC 269, O’Malley finally broke into the rankings. His impressive performance against Paiva prompted UFC president Dana White to say this at the post-fight press conference:
“When you talk to him [Sean O'Malley] – two things, he wants to get paid, and he wants to fight higher-level competition. It looks like we’re going to have to pay him.”
SUGA SEAN O'MALLEY IN ROUND ONE. BELIEVE THE HYPE. 🤯
☘️ @SugaSeanMMA unranked no more! #UFC269 https://t.co/i6vLKaOcas
That being said, we thought we’d look at five logical opponents for Sean O’ Malley’s next octagon outing.
#5. Sean O'Malley vs. Adrian Yanez
Adrian Yanez, like Sean O’Malley used to be, is an unranked bantamweight on the rise.
Yanez burst onto the scene with a successful outing in season 4 of Dana White’s Contender Series. The Texas-born bantamweight made a resounding statement with a 39-second TKO victory over Brady Huang and subsequently earned a contract with the UFC for his near-perfect performance.
Adrian Yanez with the fastest knockout in Contender Series history! https://t.co/G9OFFAq1Qq
His first three fights in the UFC earned him three ‘Performance of the Night’ bonuses. KO/TKO victories over Victor Rodriguez, Gustavo Lopez and Randy Costa saw him earn a reputation for being a tough fighter with crisp striking.
The stylistic matchup between Adrian Yanez and Sean O’Malley will certainly produce fireworks. Both fighters are powerful and accurate strikers. Yanez typically likes to push the pace and walk his opponent down, while O’Malley’s ability to inflict damage while going backwards is among the best in the UFC.
The duo went back and forth on social media before O’Malley’s fight against Raulian Paiva at UFC 269. O’Malley had called out Yanez on numerous occasions, most recently on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani. He said:
“Yeah, I would think. I mean, I called him out and he just; he stuttered. He didn’t really know what to say. He was kind of talking sh*t while saying I had really cool knockouts.”
Yanez replied to O’Malley in a tweet that read:
“@SugaSeanMMA get past this 25er [Raulian Paiva] then talk.”
@SugaSeanMMA get past this 25er then talk. twitter.com/MMAFighting/st…
Sean O’Malley made light work of Raulian Paiva at UFC 269, knocking the Brazilian out in the very first round. With just two more fights remaining on his current contract with the UFC, he will be looking to add to his highlight reel before taking on high-level contenders in the division.