Sean O'Malley: No Excuses For UFC 316 Loss, Potential Return Date
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - JUNE 07: Sean O'Malley of the United States looks on after losing to Merab ... More Dvalishvili of Georgia in the bantamweight title bout during UFC 316 at the Prudential Center on June 07, 2025 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo)
Sean O'Malley spent nearly nine months contemplating how he would get the UFC bantamweight title back from Merab Dvalishvili. It took Dvalishvili less than 15 minutes to crush O'Malley's dreams of a return to the top of the UFC's 135-pound division.
In the lead-up to Saturday's UFC 316, there was a lot of talk about O'Malley's focus on his rematch with Dvalishvili at UFC 316. The former champ, who lost his belt to Dvalishvili via decision at UFC 306 in September 2024, spoke about how he had let the persona of "Suga" Sean O'Malley take over his life, saying. 'I just wanted less distractions in my life, just in general. I was too attached to 'Suga,' too attached to this character. And it was like pulling me out of who I am on a day-to-day basis. I am a dad, I am a husband… It has been life-changing.'
While the changes O'Malley made ahead of UFC 316 will make him a better man, father, and husband, they did not help him in the cage. An upgraded version of Dvalishvili dominated O'Malley in the grappling department on his way to a third-round submission win in the main event of Saturday's fight card in front of a sold-out crowd at Newark's Prudential Center.
O'Malley, who left the Octagon with no lingering injuries or need for post-fight surgery, reflected on his second loss to Dvalishvili, and third overall, on his podcast, 'No excuses. I had a great camp. Camp was really (expletive) good, sparring was good, everything was excellent.'
When asked when he was planning a return to action, the 30-year-old O'Malley didn't have a set date in mind, but it did not sound like he was planning to take an extended break from competition.
"It's hard to say," said O'Malley. 'The division is going to play out over the next few months. We'll see where it goes. December seems like it would make sense for me to get back in there (in) six or seven months.'
Despite the loss to Dvalishvili, O'Malley retained his No. 1 ranking in the official UFC bantamweight rankings in the aftermath of UFC 316. Dvalishvili moved to the No. 2 spot in the UFC pound-for-pound rankings, jumping over UFC heavyweight champ Jon Jones with his win, and is likely to face Cory Sandhagen in his next title defense.
We will have more news on Sean O'Malley and Merab Dvalishvili as it becomes available.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Inside Pat McAfee's world: Adam Schefter's ban, solo GameDay dreams, possibly more live events
Pat McAfee's style is born from WWE DNA. McAfee is a character with traces of Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock and Roman Reigns — only real. He is outlandish, impulsive and lives in his own McAfeesphere. McAfee's unpredictable nature in writing his script is intoxicating for his audience. Like the best WWE stars, he can have his hand out to shake on an agreement and then quickly pull it away. That's Pat McAfee's music. Advertisement In recent weeks, McAfee has touted '#UpToSomethingSZN' on his social media feeds, which is the term he uses when he is thinking about new deals. While he is currently under contract with ESPN and WWE, the constraints of signed agreements have never stopped him. McAfee tends to get what he wants, which was exemplified by the right to swear on ESPN during his daily talk program, 'The Pat McAfee Show.' This privilege, a first in the network's long history, was part of McAfee's five-year, $85 million-plus licensing agreement with ESPN that he signed in the spring of 2023. McAfee has two years left on his College GameDay contract. Last year, he considered not returning before re-signing. He has mused with associates about starting his own, independent version of GameDay, according to sources briefed on discussions. This does not appear to be happening, at least not now. But he is mercurial and can make big decisions seemingly on whims. McAfee cares about his image. During a GameDay stop in Norman, Oklahoma, last fall, McAfee grew upset about being shown swinging and missing during a segment in which he faced a University of Oklahoma softball pitcher. McAfee, according to sources briefed on the incident, demanded to know the name of the GameDay staff member who put it on the air, but he was denied the information. He has essentially banned ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter from his program since March. The usually omnipresent Schefter hasn't been on 'The Pat McAfee Show' since that month's free agent deadline. Sources said that the main issue stemmed from one incident. One afternoon, McAfee wanted Schefter on his program. Schefter was appearing on an ESPN2 free agency special and was unable to make it. Schefter, formerly a McAfee Show regular, has been banished ever since. (A McAfee sidekick, Ty Schmit, has remained a regular on Schefter's podcast). Advertisement Schefter's rival, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, has been on McAfee's show instead. Prior to McAfee's program airing on ESPN, Rapoport had been a regular. ESPN NFL newcomer Peter Schrager also has appeared. 'Pat and his show are thriving on ESPN,' ESPN president of content Burke Magnus said in a statement. 'We are very pleased with the partnership. That said, in the nearly three years since Pat has brought his show to our platforms, we've continuously seen those out there that are seemingly obsessed with wanting to see Pat fail on ESPN. This rumor is just the latest example of that. Pat and his show continue to break the mold and reach new audiences, and we look forward to the continued success together.' Magnus did not answer any questions. McAfee did not return messages. ESPN declined further comment. Hours after The Athletic reached out about Schefter's banishment, an ESPN spokesperson said that Schefter will return to McAfee's show on Thursday for the first time in around three months. Besides the behind-the-scenes machinations, McAfee has also been in the middle of on-air headlines. He has discussed a false internet rumor about an unknown 18-year-old college student, which made national headlines, called a now-former top ESPN executive a 'rat' and allowed Aaron Rodgers to pontificate political and medical theories on the all-sports network. McAfee likes to pretend like he is some dumb jock, but he is smart and has quickly figured out the sports media business. He can do good and charitable TV, like his must-see kicking segments during GameDay, where he has given college students the chance to make a field goal for hundreds of thousands of dollars. He and Nick Saban, a yin-and-yang combo, have breathed new life into the iconic program. All in all, McAfee freelances, not guided by some traditional media playbook. He is gutsy, willing to jump from his WWE commentator seat and into the ring, and then make a bet-on-himself career turn. Advertisement In 2017, McAfee, then just 29 with knee issues, walked away from a $2.8 million salary as the punter for the Indianapolis Colts to join Barstool Sports. After several moves, his popularity led to a reported four-year, $120 million deal with FanDuel. Two years ago, he left that contract before its completion to sign his licensing deal with ESPN. ESPN values its connection with McAfee, who attracts a younger audience, according to ESPN's internal data. He and Stephen A. Smith are the network's most talked-about personalities. McAfee's association with ESPN is part of its strategy as it dives into the full direct-to-consumer game beginning this fall. ESPN will make its service available without a cable or any other type of bundled subscription. (Fans with cable or a similar subscription will see no change to their ESPN access.) In ESPN's first 30-second promotion for the new venture, McAfee joined Smith, Scott Van Pelt, Malika Andrews and Dick Vitale as the only current on-air personalities shown. As part of the fall launch of the direct-to-consumer service, a campaign that ESPN has marketed as 'Sports Forever,' ESPN has been trying to add more content to the enhanced ESPN app to make it a go-to for existing and future customers. It failed in luring Colin Cowherd from Fox Sports but succeeded with former ESPN personality Rich Eisen, taking his daily show from Roku. Both Cowherd's and Eisen's talk shows happen to be on at the same time as McAfee's noon-3 p.m. ET program. They would not have replaced McAfee from noon-2 p.m on ESPN's main channel, but they will be available via streaming, like McAfee's show. 'We will have responses, as well,' McAfee said on the air after the Eisen news was public. McAfee did not offer up any specifics. Adding to the time-slot counter-programming, Smith will have his own SiriusXM program from 1-3 p.m. ET that will be in direct competition with McAfee. ESPN has plenty of on-air contributors to go around, but there may be more scoreboard-keeping from McAfee, as there was with Schefter in March. Advertisement McAfee clearly values the guests he has — and part of his personality seems to crave the WWE-type conflict. He writes the script and, like the best dramas, it is always hard to know where it is going to go. We will offer a prediction of sorts: McAfee will likely look to do more live events. In April, he performed in front of a reported crowd of more than 12,500 fans in an arena in Pittsburgh, where he grew up. His guests included big names, like singer Jelly Roll, comedian Shane Gillis and wrestler Jey Uso, among others. Maybe McAfee sets his sights on New Year's Eve and tries to create his own franchise, like a modern day Dick Clark or a counter to Ryan Seacrest and Anderson Cooper as the ball drops. McAfee could use his WWE instincts to find new rivals. He likes to be the one counter-programming.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
J.J. McCarthy minicamp reps may not induce headlines — but that's OK (and intentional)
EAGAN, Minn. — The second mandatory minicamp practice had just finished, and there was the Minnesota Vikings' new center Ryan Kelly, cradling his helmet next to the field and saying things like, 'This is the most talented team I've ever been around top to bottom.' You really feel that way? 'Oh yeah,' Kelly said. 'It's impressive.' Advertisement His former team, the Colts, hasn't had the rosiest recent past. Indianapolis only made the playoffs twice in Kelly's nine-year tenure with the club, but still, this observation means something. The 32-year-old knows his way around a locker room. He's played for multiple coaches, snapped the ball to plenty of quarterbacks and rubbed shoulders with almost every type of teammate. Kelly saying this was — at the bare minimum — internal validation of the widely held external beliefs about these Vikings. With elite talent comes immense responsibility, especially at quarterback. There is a reason J.J. McCarthy is a popular talking point in the NFL universe. There is a reason he is deserving of space right here. His burden is large. These Vikings, built to go further than was realistically possible in years past, will succeed or fail with the youngster. Kelly understands that. 'I think that's also why I'm here,' he said. He's right. Kelly's presence is just one of the countless steps taken by coach Kevin O'Connell and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to maximize what's possible. It's not that former Vikings center Garrett Bradbury didn't have experience, especially within Minnesota's system. Kelly, though, is both a better player and a key cog who has worked with different quarterback personalities, skill sets and experience levels. Andrew Luck, Jacoby Brissett, Philip Rivers, Matt Ryan, Anthony Richardson and others require varying degrees of assistance. One might suspect Kelly would be spending these practices passing tidbits to McCarthy. He's not. This, too, is calculated. Why make things easy when there is no report card? Why not challenge McCarthy to assess all of the potential defensive looks? Why not evaluate what it looks like when he has to take everything in, then spit out play calls with lengthy verbiage? Why not ask him to adjust protections and try to get the offense into the right play? Advertisement Why remove an aspect of traditional development simply because you have a center who can serve as a backstop? 'If you never have to do all of this,' Kelly said, 'you're looking through it like a tiny lens. In order to see the full picture, you have to have coaches who demand that of you. His development to understand is more important than me showing how capable I am. We want to push this guy, and he's responded incredibly well. He's a very smart guy.' The extent of the demands is partially why O'Connell scoffs at those who track McCarthy's results on days like these. McCarthy may progress from the front side of a concept to the back side and hit a receiver in stride, but could he have identified something in the coverage that would have quickened his progression? McCarthy may drill a receiver running a go route, but did he make that throw because the play call required so many words that he couldn't get it off in time? 9️⃣ to 3️⃣ 🎯🎯 — Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) June 10, 2025 This mental stress is but a fraction of what it'll feel like on Sundays in the fall. It's also just one component of the full picture that allows the most successful quarterbacks to thrive. There is the physical piece, encompassing everything from lower-half mechanics to the touch applied to throws upon release. The Vikings have never questioned McCarthy's sheer arm strength. They're looking for progress in his ability to induce an arc on the ball. There is the cognitive piece, the split-second decision-making process after the snap. Can you visualize the defense's structure and pull the trigger at the right time? Can you do it with 300-pound men bearing down on you in 2 1/2 seconds? There is also the psychological piece. Navigating real-world stressors and in-game trials calls for a sense of calm. Advertisement Each piece affects the other. Sounds easy, right? 'I think (J.J.) is right where he needs to be right now,' offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said Wednesday. 'And right where we thought he'd be. I don't think he'd come up here and say he mastered the offense. Every rep is a learning rep.' Every one of these days is an integral learning day, as cliched as that sounds, or as mundane as it looks. Although the Vikings shifted from organized team activities last week to minicamp this week, the speed of the drills remained the same. McCarthy has not taken one snap in an 11-on-11 setting with defensive coordinator Brian Flores' pass rush coming at him with its collective hair on fire. That doesn't mean Kelly, offensive line coach Chris Kuper, quarterbacks coach Josh McCown and O'Connell aren't conferring after practice about the next test they think would be valuable for McCarthy. That doesn't mean these opportunities aren't the ones that will allow all of the pieces of the puzzle to come together as smoothly as possible when it matters most.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Dodgers trade deadline primer: 3 early storylines to watch
Foolish or not, Andrew Friedman set an outlandish goal last December. Sitting in a suite at the Hilton Anatole hotel in Dallas at baseball's annual Winter Meetings, the Los Angeles Dodgers' president of baseball operations set out a hope for this year's trade deadline. 'My goal is to not buy in July,' Friedman said. 'I am setting that out there right now. My goal is to do everything we can right now to not buy in July. It is terrible. (Knock on) everything. It is a terrible time to acquire talent. We're going to do everything we can to put ourselves in a position to not. Obviously, as we said last year, if we need to, we will. But our goal is to not.' Advertisement That will not happen. The Dodgers' pitching depth is decimated. Their injured list is 14 names long. So yes, the Dodgers will be in the pitching market next month, likely for something Friedman loathes: He hates trading for relievers in July. 'I hate trading for relievers at the deadline,' Friedman said in 2022. 'It's my least favorite thing to do. The acquisition cost is totally out of whack. So I like to avoid it as much as possible.' Still, the Dodgers have found success in doing so. Their three-team trade last year to acquire not just utilityman Tommy Edman but reliever Michael Kopech was a coup. Another impactful trade came last May when they sent cash to the Cleveland Guardians for Anthony Banda, who put up a 3.08 ERA in 48 appearances the rest of the way. They went hard after Tanner Scott last summer, then wound up signing him last winter after he starred post-deadline for the San Diego Padres. The Dodgers will be buyers, as we all expected. It's impossible to rule out the Dodgers if the opportunity presents itself. They'll have the ammunition to get most deals done. Perhaps they are the team that thinks it can get Sandy Alcantara right after struggling in his return from Tommy John surgery. The Dodgers tried to pry Tarik Skubal from the Detroit Tigers last year before swinging a deal with them for Jack Flaherty. Still, the Dodgers are bullish on what they have coming back. They remain optimistic they'll have Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani back in their rotation before long. Roki Sasaki remains a project even when healthy, but he's still in the picture. They've heaped praise on how good Emmet Sheehan has looked while completing his Tommy John rehab. By the numbers, the Dodgers could use starting help. They entered Wednesday having gotten the third-fewest innings out of their starters (317), ahead of just the Colorado Rockies and Miami Marlins. Not great company. Their 4.32 ERA ranks 23rd, and their 10.6 percent walk rate was the worst in the majors. Their depth options have largely floundered: Bobby Miller, Landon Knack and Justin Wrobleski have combined for a 6.29 ERA. Advertisement It's just not priority No. 1. The Dodgers still believe they have enough high-end arms coming back from injury. Likely a right-handed reliever, especially in the wake of Evan Phillips undergoing Tommy John surgery and the uncertain futures of Blake Treinen and Brusdar Graterol. Though the Dodgers still anticipate Treinen returning — he's been playing catch but still has a ways to go — and Graterol is working his way back from offseason shoulder surgery, the club could still look to add another high-end arm. Alexis Díaz is among the options, with the Dodgers jumping into the market last month to acquire the former All-Star closer. Ben Casparius is another internal October option. The Dodgers are considering stretching the rookie right-hander as a starter, but he has shown an ability to handle leverage spots and filled a valuable role in the bullpen during last year's postseason run. This is a bullpen that has already taken on the biggest workload in the majors (290 innings entering Wednesday) and could use the fresh arms just to get it to the finish line. The team has already had 30 players throw a pitch for it, including Chris Stratton, José Ureña, J.P. Feyereisen, Ryan Loutos and Yoendrys Gómez. Expect the shuffle to continue. The Dodgers chose offense over defense this winter when acquiring Michael Conforto to go with re-signing Teoscar Hernández to align their corner outfield spots. Except Conforto, who signed a one-year deal worth $17 million to juice up his value, hasn't worked out. Even after Wednesday, when he tied the score with a solo home run in the fifth inning, Conforto has a .600 OPS. That's the eighth worst in baseball among qualified hitters. Michael ties it! — Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) June 11, 2025 As patient as the Dodgers have been with Conforto, it's not as if they're overflowing with options should they move off him. James Outman has largely scuffled in the big leagues since finishing third in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2023. Their other 40-man roster outfield options — Esteury Ruiz and Steward Berroa — had been designated for assignment by other clubs. The team hasn't experimented with Dalton Rushing getting reps in the outfield in the big leagues after the catching prospect saw time there in the minor leagues. Advertisement Andy Pages has had a stellar season and has played left field on days when Conforto sits, but he has also shown himself to be a strong defensive center fielder after some early flubs. One could imagine a scenario with Pages in left, Edman in center and Hernández in right in October. Part of the logic in having Mookie Betts play shortstop is decisions like the one facing the Dodgers next month. It's certainly cheaper to find a corner outfield bat than a shortstop at the deadline. Prospect Alex Freeland is an intriguing infield option, if needed, as an internal replacement or a trade option. The Dodgers' offensive needs aren't dire. They entered Wednesday ranked second in baseball in scoring 5.53 runs per game. But they'll monitor the market, just as they did a year ago in acquiring Edman, Kevin Kiermaier and Amed Rosario at the deadline (Rosario lasted just a week before being cut). (Top photo of Anthony Banda: David Frerker / Imagn Images)
