

Sean O’Malley strutted into UFC 306 as one of the biggest stars in UFC. He carried a virtually unblemished record and a powerful aura of confidence inside the mega event happening at The Sphere in Las Vegas. He is known for his powerful striking, smooth footwork, and ability to defend wrestlers well, but Merab Dvalishvili changed everything.
‘The Machine’ stayed true to his moniker and executed relentless pace and pressure-wrestling that gave ‘Suga’ a pretty hard time. The 19-4-0 Georgian star is at #5 in pound-for-pound rankings, and O’Malley is currently at the #1 spot in the rankings after his loss. However, he is #13 in the P4P rankings. Despite the hard-fought loss, did he think he won against Dvalishvili? Absolutely.
O’Malley re-watched his fight with Dvalishvili, live-posting his reaction on X, and saying that he should have won the decision by taking rounds 1, 3, and 5. However even though he lost against Dvalishvili, let’s not forget his achievements. The fight against Marlon Vera at UFC 299 was a masterful performance where he won the fight by unanimous decision, avenging his only professional loss.
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Even actor and martial artist Michael Jai White was impressed with ‘Suga’s performance so much so that he compared his fight against Marlon Vera at UFC 299 to a Bruce Lee movie action sequence! While hearing about the present overall rankings from DJ Vlad, he was surprised to hear that O’Malley was #13 in the P4P ranks. He said, “Yeah why would he drop that low?” Immediately the host clarified that in the bantamweight division, the Montana native was still in the first position.
This is when he expressed his sentiments on O’Malley and said, “Yeah, just one of the best performances I’ve… the fight before last; one of the best performances I’ve ever seen. That guy was razor-sharp. It was like watching a Bruce Lee movie.”

via Imago
Credits: Imago
‘Suga’ had put a 5-round striking masterclass against Marlon ‘Chito‘ Vera and was rewarded with 50-45, 50-45, and 50-44 on the judges’ scorecards. But what now? People always judge each other by their last performance, and ‘Suga’ looked out of his element against ‘The Machine’. So what does O’Malley’s future hold?
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ChatGPT predicted Sean O’Malley’s possible future
Sean O’Malley has been inactive since his loss at UFC 306 and the former bantamweight champ is preparing for a return this year. But can it possibly be a title rematch against Dvalishvili? Dana White did not give a definitive no.
What’s your perspective on:
Can Sean O'Malley bounce back stronger, or is his reign at the top over?
Have an interesting take?
The UFC CEO answered some questions following UFC Fight Night 252 and was asked about a possible matchmaking in the bantamweight division. “They want to fight each other. I think people want to see it,” White said. As per Chat GPT, Sean O’Malley would definitely find his way back to the title conversation, as his first opponent might be Cory Sandhagen.
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With renewed vigor, ‘Suga’ would go into the #1 contender fight against Sandhagen and this fight would be a striking slugfest because the duo have razor-sharp accuracy. ‘Suga’ might finish the fight by securing a brutal finish in the third round, cementing his status as next in the line for the title.
But then ‘Suga’ has to face Umar Nurmagomedov and it won’t be an easy fight. So what do you think will happen to O’Malley? Will he get back on top or change his focus to fight against other stars?
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Debate
Can Sean O'Malley bounce back stronger, or is his reign at the top over?