MISSOULA β Thanksgiving provided plenty for which to be thankful for MMA fans in the Treasure State.
Helena native "Suga" Sean O'Malley is set to make his UFC return at UFC 324 in Las Vegas on Jan. 24, the promotion announced last Thursday. O'Malley will take on Song Yadong in a bantamweight mixed martial arts bout at T-Mobile Arena.
π¨ STARTING OFF THE YEAR RIGHT π¨The first card of 2026 is STACKED!Watch #UFC324 LIVE January 24 on @ParamountPlus pic.twitter.com/ZwG25pNteL
β UFC (@ufc) November 27, 2025
For O'Malley, it'll be his first non-title fight in over two years as he looks to get back on track. The former UFC bantamweight champion is on a two-fight losing skid, both coming at the hands of current champion Merab Dvalishvili. Dvalishvili took the title from O'Malley at UFC 306 at The Sphere in Las Vegas on Sept. 14, 2024, and then defeated the Montanan in a rematch at UFC 316 in New Jersey in June by third-round submission.
O'Malley, 31, is currently 18-3 with one no contest in his pro MMA career. He is 10-3 with the no contest in the UFC.
Yadong, who originally hails from China and trains out of Sacramento, Calif., is 22-8-1 with one no contest as a professional mixed martial artist and is 11-3-1 in the UFC. Yadong has split his previous two bouts and won three of his last four fights. He won his most-recent bout which ended in controversy as Yadong beat Henry Cejudo in February. Cejudo was poked in the eye accidentally and rendered unable to continue due to the injury.
Yadong, 28, lost his previous bout before that to Petr Yan on March 9, 2024, by unanimous decision.
