Sean O’Malley has experienced one of the most promising rises in UFC history. From Dana White’s Contender Series 2 to becoming the Bantamweight champion, “Suga” has come a long way. O’Malley made his UFC debut by winning DWCS 2 in July 2017. He then successfully fought in “The Ultimate Fighter 26” in the same year and then at UFC 222 in March 2018.
However, O'Malley's journey has not been without its challenges. MMA fighters dealing with injuries isn’t a surprise at all. Injuries mostly occur because of rigorous training or during sparring and often lead to fights getting postponed or canceled. Apart from just injuries and drug tests, the legal and administrative processes of the suspensions took those extra months from him.
Early Career Injuries
One of the reasons was injury. During his UFC 222 fight against Andre Soukhamthath, while trying to land a kick to his opponent’s head, O’Malley injured his foot. “Suga” later told Ariel Helwani during an appearance on “The MMA Hour” that he had been dealing with a pre-existing fracture in his foot already, and the UFC 222 injury probably worsened it.
Suspensions and USADA Issues
By October 2018, O’Malley was supposed to fight José Alberto Quiñónez at UFC 229. However, he withdrew from the fight after he tested positive for Ostarine. “Suga” was transparent about the issue and believed it happened because of some contaminated dietary supplement.
After that, he was supposed to fight Marlon Vera at UFC 239 in July 2019. This time, he tested positive for Ostarine again. It was concluded that the trace amounts were probably the residual from the previous contamination. USADA resolved the case with a six-month suspension that started in August 2019. At the time, O’Malley had to go through many back-to-back tests. However, “Suga” held no grudges against USADA. During an interview with “MMA Fighting”, he said, “I think they’re trying to do their best. It’s something that’s going to be a process to figure where the line should be drawn.
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Recent Injury and Surgery
Sean O’Malley, regardless of the outcome of his fight against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306, would’ve taken time off to get hip surgery. According to an initial report from ESPN, O'Malley, 29, tore his left labrum at the start of his fight camp in preparation for his second UFC bantamweight title defense at UFC 306 at the Sphere in Las Vegas, Nevada. O'Malley will need hip surgery.
O'Malley on his official YouTube channel, revealed that he’s scheduled to undergo surgery for his left labrum in his hip on October 3, 2024. “I mean, every time. Every time. I have surgery October 3rd. I’m excited about the whole, I just kind of mentally accepted it unlike the defeat. I just mentally accepted, alright, we’re going to f****g go through surgery.
O'Malley still battled through the injury in fight camp and went on to headline the Sphere, where he lost to Merab Dvalishvili by unanimous decision, surrendering his championship belt in the process. O'Malley struggled with Dvalishvili's relentless pace and takedown attempts in Saturday's fight. Dvalishvili easily won rounds one, two and four with round three a more competitive back-and-forth between the two. O'Malley rallied in the fifth round to find some offense, but by then it was too late as Dvalishvili made it to the end of the fight to secure his 11th win in a row and the UFC title. Dvalishvili out-struck O'Malley 214 to 49 and secured six takedowns in the fight.
“I have surgery on Oct. 3," O'Malley recently told streamer Adin Ross. "I tore my left labrum in my hip. That's the only reason I'm going to be out for so long. This surgery should only take two months to come back from, then a couple months recovery. A year is a long time, could be six to eight months. You never know."
In his own podcast with his head coach, Tim Welch, O'Malley didn't use the injury as an excuse in the loss, but said it could be up to a year before he fights again. "Best weight cut, felt good, no excuses," O'Malley said. "My mom, she's like, 'You just weren't the same, what was wrong?' Nothing. I just got beat. Everyone keeps asking me, 'Something seemed off.' No excuses." With the loss, O'Malley dropped to 18-2 with one no contest as a professional mixed martial artist.
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From feeling uncomfortable doing day-to-day movements to not being able to try out new tactics in training, there are many ways it bothered him. He admitted that things are worse if a fighter is dealing with a knee, hip, or ankle injury. The former champ also pointed out that he hasn’t been able to lift weights because of being concerned about the injury. This explains why “Suga” aims to fully recover ahead of his UFC return. He’ll be 30 by then and considers 30-35 to be his physical prime. So, his plan for the next 12 months mostly involves eating, sleeping, and resting properly. With his return date several months away, O’Malley doesn’t want to think of a comeback fight yet.
After reiterating that he could’ve won three rounds against Dvalishvili, O’Malley discussed the implications of his hip injury.
Here's a summary of O'Malley's injuries and setbacks:
| Date | Event | Issue |
|---|---|---|
| March 2018 | UFC 222 | Foot injury (pre-existing fracture worsened) |
| October 2018 | UFC 229 | Withdrew due to positive Ostarine test |
| July 2019 | UFC 239 | Positive Ostarine test (residual contamination), six-month suspension |
| October 2024 | UFC 306 | Tore left labrum in hip, requiring surgery |
O’Malley during a post-fight interview after UFC 269.Sean O’Malley won the bantamweight title on Saturday at UFC 292, defeating Aljamain Sterling with an injury that should have prevented him from victory.
“I haven’t grappled in six weeks,” O’Malley admitted. “I’ve had a muscle strain, and I literally couldn’t grapple or MMA spar. There was no way I was pulling out [of the fight], but I had a muscle strain right under my rib. I could not get taken down.”
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Remarkably, O’Malley did not get taken down by Sterling, a world-class grappler. Instead, Sterling entered the second round looking to strike. He overextended with a left hand, landing off-balance, and O’Malley found his chin in the opening moments of the round.
For O’Malley, the blueprint for victory was laid in the first round. His lateral movement, constantly shifting left and right throughout the first five minutes, made Sterling impatient. It was that patience that won O’Malley the fight, resolute to his game plan as he awaited the moment when Sterling exposed his chin.
And that was the only path to victory. Had Sterling grappled with O’Malley, the upset win would have never taken place.
“Dealing with those mental demons, knowing I was injured, it was life or death if he took me down,” says O’Malley. “I could not get taken down.”
Sterling veered from his game plan, a decision that will haunt him. Had he avoided striking with O’Malley, his record-breaking reign as bantamweight champ would still be ongoing. Instead, it is O’Malley who is the new king of the bantamweights.
“It’s a crazy sense of relief,” says O’Malley. “It’s like holy sh--, I didn’t get taken down. The odds of me not getting taken down in 25 minutes against a very good grappler was not very high.
“The guy he beat tonight is a real guy, a very real guy,” White told reporters during a post-fight interview. The “spectacular fashion,” however, may have cost him. The rainbow-haired boy from Montana was given a minimum suspension until Jan. 11, and will need to undergo an x-ray and an MRI on his right hand and the base of his thumb to check for any breaks or fractures.
O’Malley isn’t the only fighter of the night to be hit with a potential 180-day suspension either. Pedro Munoz (right foot injury), Miranda Maverick (left foot injury), and Tony Kelly (left shoulder injury).
“Stylistically, I love it,” Okamoto said of a Moraes-O’Malley bout. “Standup fight, with plenty of finishing power on both sides. Creativity and athleticism on both sides. Moraes has lost three in a row, but we know who Moraes is.
On a potential rematch against Marlon Vera (Vera defeated O’Malley when they last met in 2020), Okamoto added “Some will love this idea. Some will hate it… Vera picked up the victory fair and square, but O’Malley was compromised by a nerve injury. It’s true Vera caused that nerve injury with a kick, but it’s also true that is a very rare way to win a fight. This rematch is going to happen at some point.
Who do you think O’Malley will fight next?