Sean O’Malley Grappling Again Following Hip Surgery
James Lynch recently interviewed Sean O’Malley’s coach Tim Welch for Home of Fight. During the interview, Welch revealed that the former UFC bantamweight champion is starting to grapple in the gym post-surgery.
👀 Sean O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch, on O’Malley’s recent discipline:
"[He’s] putting down social media, not doing podcasts, saying no to interviews. If you saw his recovery sessions… he’s really recovering like a pro."
🎥 @Home_of_Fight & @LynchOnSports ▫️ pic.twitter.com/ttyY6URVk3
— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) January 30, 2025
“They [UFC] haven’t confirmed anything with us,” Welch said. “They gave us a couple of ideas, they haven’t confirmed anything or any date. Right now, finally, he’s starting to get back to being able to wrestle and train jiu-jitsu for real, which is really nice and it makes me feel a lot better. But right now, we’re just focusing on recovering like a champion and just doing everything he can, putting down all social media, not doing anymore podcasts, saying no to interviews. If you saw his recovery sessions after some of his workouts you’d be like, ‘Holy smokes.’ He’s really recovering like a pro, and to beat someone like Merab that’s what it’s going to take.”
UFC CEO Dana White recently told Jim Rome that he expects O’Malley to get a title rematch against Merab Dvalishvili at some point this year. Dvalishvili is fresh off his first successful title defense, thwarting the efforts of the previously unbeaten Umar Nurmagomedov. Dvalishvili won the UFC 311 co-main event via unanimous decision.
Now, fans are left to wonder how soon O’Malley can return to the Octagon. International Fight Week is always a juicy time period for a star such as “Suga,” but time will tell what ultimately transpires.
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