Four years to the day after Sean O’Malley beat Petr Yan by split decision at UFC 280 in Abu Dhabi, the UFC is back in the same city with Yan’s bantamweight title at stake.
Yan is set to defend his belt against Merab Dvalishvili in a trilogy bout in the UFC 333 co-main event Saturday at Etihad Arena. No fighter is more eagerly waiting for the result of the bout than O’Malley, who does not have a fight scheduled but is riding a two-fight winning streak.
Sean O’Malley Tells Petr Yan to Hope He Loses at UFC 333
Bantamweight contender O’Malley, currently ranked number three on the UFC media rankings, posted a playful video message warning the Bantamweight champion ahead of this weekend’s title fight.
The 31-year-old delivers his warning while wearing a wig and a robe before stripping down to pink shorts to throw a spinning back kick at a Century BOB freestanding training dummy. He appears in the 14-second video alongside a little boy in a blue toy car. The child’s confused reaction as “Suga” runs away at the end left social media users laughing.
“PETR YAN! You better hope you don’t win this weekend buddy, because if you do you gotta fight me. You don’t want that,” O’Malley said in the short clip.
Sean O’Malley sends a message to Petr Yan before his fight with Merab this weekend 😭
“PETR YAN! You better hope you don’t win this weekend buddy, because if you do you gotta fight me. You don’t want that.” #UFC333 https://t.co/MMfcbur9Ai
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 21, 2026
O’Malley’s recent video aligns with comments he made earlier this year. In February 2026, O’Malley stated that he wanted Yan next. He argued that Yan should not face Merab Dvalishvili’s heavy wrestling pressure so soon after undergoing a major, nine-hour lower back surgery to fix long-term injury issues.
On his YouTube channel, he said, “Ideally, I want Petr Yan next. I hate the idea of him coming off back surgery and fighting Merab, especially if he tries to rush it. I f*cking rushed it with my hip and that’s completely different than a back.”
Yan responded to the concern in a private Instagram voice note that O’Malley later leaked, promising he would defeat Dvalishvili first and fight O’Malley next.
Both enter this weekend after rebuilding their momentum following past defeats. After losing his bantamweight title and dropping consecutive bouts to Dvalishvili, “Suga” bounced back with a 2-0 record in 2026. He defeated Song Yadong by decision at UFC 324 in January, then secured a knockout win over Aiemann Zahabi at UFC Freedom 250 in June.
Meanwhile, Yan’s history with Dvalishvili is currently tied at 1-1. Yan lost their first match by decision in March 2023, but won the rematch by decision at UFC 323 in December 2025 to win back the championship belt. His subsequent back surgery earlier this year is the reason this trilogy fight was delayed until now.
Their tie-breaking championship bout will directly precede the evening’s main event, where long-reigning featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski defends his title against the undefeated 20-0 powerhouse Movsar Evloev.
