Former UFC champion Sean O’Malley’s first knockout in the Octagon came after a long absence from competition.
Sean O’Malley‘s early UFC career came to an abrupt halt when he suffered from several health-related issues following his first two wins with the promotion. But when the UFC star returned from two years on the sidelines at UFC 248, O’Malley earned his first knockout in the promotion with style.
O’Malley was welcomed back to the UFC Octagon by Jose Alberto Quinonez, a promotional veteran who earned wins over the likes of Teruto Ishihara and Joey Gomez. It was a stiff test for O’Malley after a long layoff from competition after coasting with back-to-back decision wins to kick off his UFC tenure.
Some fighters might’ve taken a cautious approach in a comeback fight following a lengthy time on the sidelines, but O’Malley wasn’t one of them.
- READ MORE: Top 5 bantamweights of all time ranked ahead of Merab Dvalishvili vs Sean O’Malley 2 at UFC 316
Sean O’Malley tallied first UFC knockout with wild head kick at UFC 248
O’Malley and Quinonez wasted little time getting after it in the Octagon on the UFC 248 main card. In a reminder to UFC fans, O’Malley showcased the ‘Suga Show’ with perfectly-timed feints, elusiveness, and creativity on the feet.
Quinonez didn’t back down from O’Malley in the opening minutes, as he landed a few heavy blows to the UFC prospect early on in the fight. But O’Malley turned the tide midway through Round 1, dropping Quinonez with a right hand before following up with a head kick as his opponent attempted to get back to his feet.
O’Malley sealed the win with brutal ground-and-pound strikes before the referee quickly stepped in to show Quinonez mercy. The T-Mobile Arena crowd went nuts as O’Malley celebrated his first of what would be many UFC knockout victories.
In his follow-up performance months later, in what would be his first UFC appearance without a crowd due to the COVID-19 pandemic, O’Malley flattened Eddie Wineland with one punch at UFC 250. As of this writing, O’Malley has tallied six UFC knockouts, including wins over Aljamain Sterling and Kris Moutinho.
Sean O’Malley’s last fight before UFC callup ended similarly to UFC 248 bout
O’Malley’s knockout win at UFC 248 finished in similar fashion to what was his final non-UFC fight before getting the call to compete on Dana White’s Contender Series. At LFA 11, O’Malley knocked out David Nuzzo with a first-round wheel kick to secure his shot at a UFC contract.
O’Malley is looking for revenge this weekend against UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 316. Just months ago, O’Malley suffered one of his lone UFC setbacks to Dvalishvili at UFC 306.
O’Malley has a mammoth task in front of him as he prepares to run it back with Dvalishvili at UFC 316. While a knockout might be hard to earn this weekend, don’t be surprised if the ‘Suga Show’ makes a triumphant return to the bantamweight throne.