MMA Preview – Petr Yan vs Sean O’Malley at UFC 280
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PETR YAN VS SEAN O’MALLEY FACTS
When is UFC 280? Saturday 22nd October, 2022 -17:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC 280? Etihad Arena, Abu Dhabi (UAE)
Where can I get tickets for UFC 280? Click here to buy tickets for UFC 280
What channel is UFC 280 on? BT Sport 3 (prelims)
Where can I stream UFC 280? BT Sport subscribers can stream the fight online via the BT Sport website
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
PETR YAN VS SEAN O’MALLEY LOWDOWN
Petr Yan (16-3) is not too happy about supporting the bantamweight title fight in the co-main event, but he has a juicy match-up. He is coming off his only real loss in the UFC, getting out grappled and subdued long enough to fall short in a split decision to Aljamain Sterling back in April. His first UFC loss was a disqualification last year, mindlessly landing an illegal knee in a fight he was beginning to run away with. Those losses sandwiched a classy and super impressive unanimous decision win over Cory Sandhagen eight months later.
The other half of Sean Shelby’s wacky matchmaking is Sean O’Malley (15-1(1)). Some feel it is too soon for the ‘Suga Show’, but both men want it and fans cannot wait. Besides his TKO loss to Marlon Vera (2020), he has looked unstoppable in the UFC. After that loss, he knocked out Thomas Almeida (2021), Kris Moutinho (2021) and Raulian Paiva (2021) to seal his seventh UFC dub. He then met Pedro Munhoz back in July, but the exciting scrap was cut short due to an eye poke on Munhoz.
PETR YAN VS SEAN O’MALLEY PREDICTION
O’Malley has landed on his feet after that ‘no contest’ getting paired with the number one ranked bantamweight. Kudos to Yan for accepting the fight, but it makes sense to fight O’Malley now as he is only getting better.
The guaranteed winner here will be the fans as we will witness the highest level of striking. The main differences on paper is Yan’s experience, in particular his five-round experience and O’Malley’s range advantage which will be five inches in reach and four in height.
Yan is going to try and close the distance and turn this into a Muay Thai fight unleashing damage in the pocket and clinching up against the fence and piercing O’Malley with knees and elbows. O’Malley will try and maintain the distance and use his footwork to throw powerful combinations while circling. Yan will try and cut him off and try and chop down his leg, disabling his movement. O’Malley has been susceptible to leg kicks absorbing way more than he needs to and Yan has the power to cripple them.
O’Malley needs to start quickly before Yan gets a read on him especially as O’Malley has the output to keep up a fierce pace for 15 minutes. Nobody has out struck Yan so far and we do not know how high O’Malley’s ceiling is.
This is tough to call but we feel Yan’s experience will allow him to mix up his attacks and adapt by targeting the leg and clinching up. His performances against the legend Jose Aldo and the lanky Sandhagen make him a heavy favourite so O’Malley is the play. He has the accuracy, fight IQ and power to cause the upset.
Prediction: Yan via Decision
Value Bet: O’Malley to win
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