Though the grade for his most recent step up in competition was
incomplete at best, Sean
O’Malley will nonetheless see the degree of difficulty increase
considerably for his next Octagon appearance.
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O’Malley announced on ESPN’s DC & RC
that he will face former bantamweight champion Petr Yan at
UFC 280 in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 22. Both fighters have reportedly
verbally agreed to the booking, but contracts haven’t been issued
at this time.
“I’m getting the fight that I wanted, and the fight that people
want,” O’Malley said. “I’m so excited for this. I almost can’t even
believe it’s real, it’s happening.”
UFC 280 takes place at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi and is headlined
by a lightweight championship clash pitting Charles
Oliveira against Islam
Makhachev.
Yan claimed the vacant bantamweight crown with a fifth-round TKO of
Jose
Aldo at UFC 251 before losing the belt via disqualification
against Aljamain
Sterling at UFC 259. “No Mercy” rebounded to capture interim
gold with a five-round verdict over Cory
Sandhagen before falling to Sterling in a rematch at UFC 273
this past April.
O’Malley, meanwhile, is coming off a bout against Pedro
Munhoz that ended in a no contest due to an accidental eye poke
at UFC 276. “Sugar” seemed to be doing well leading up to the foul,
but neither fighter had done anything to establish a clear
advantage in the fight. O’Malley is 15-1 as a professional and 7-1
in UFC competition — with his lone setback coming at the hands of
Marlon
Vera.