O’Malley’s Road Back to the UFC Title Picture
After losing the bantamweight title to Merab Dvalishvili in September 2024, Sean O’Malley said he wanted another title opportunity. He fought Dvalishvili again in June 2025 and lost by ninja-choke submission at 4:42 of Round 3 on June 7, 2025.
Dvalishvili won their rematch
Dvalishvili submitted O’Malley with a ninja choke at 4:42 of Round 3 on June 7, 2025, and kept the title. It was their second meeting and O’Malley’s second straight loss to Dvalishvili. The official event report records the result.
Two 2026 wins rebuilt momentum
O’Malley returned with a unanimous-decision win over Song Yadong on January 24, 2026. On June 14, he stopped Aiemann Zahabi with a walk-off knockout at 4:02 of Round 2. After the Zahabi win, O’Malley called for another title opportunity. The promotion’s January results and June results confirm both victories.
O’Malley returned in 2026 with wins over Song Yadong and Aiemann Zahabi, rebuilding his position in the division. Those victories strengthened his title case, but the cited results do not confirm a title booking.
The 2025 rematch loss was followed by two 2026 wins, over Song Yadong and Aiemann Zahabi. The Zahabi knockout came in round two and followed O’Malley’s unanimous-decision win over Song Yadong in January. Those results improved his position after back-to-back defeats, but no title fight was confirmed by the cited reporting.
Sources
- Official June 2025 result
- Official January 2026 result
- Official June 2026 result
