Sean O'Malley reveals when he's targeting a return to the octagon

Rising UFC bantamweight star 'Sugar' Sean O'Malley has revealed which month he is targeting for his next octagon appearance. His last fight took place at UFC 264 and saw him defeat debutant Kris Moutinho via TKO.

Whilst O'Malley was victorious against Moutinho, he still ended up with multiple injuries as both his hands, his left tibia and right foot all required medical clearance from an orthopedic doctor. The injuries initially appeared to have O'Malley potentially sidelined until January 2022.

However, speaking on the 25th episode of his podcast, Sean O'Malley revealed that he is aiming to get one more fight in before 2021 is over. He stated the following:

"They wanted me to fight in New York, potentially. There's this big jiu-jitsu tournament that weekend and New York's taxes are insane so I probably won't do that. Probably will be looking at Vegas in December. That's what I'm thinking... Probably gonna be December in Vegas."

Check out the full episode of O'Malley's podcast below:

Who could Sean O'Malley fight next?

In the latest episode of his podcast, Sean O'Malley avoided naming specific opponents for his return. However, in his post-fight interview following his victory over Moutinho, O'Malley did call out several potential opponents.

The names on O'Malley's mind were Cody Garbrandt, Petr Yan, Dominick Cruz and Rob Font.

“Cody Garbrandt hasn’t won a fight since 2012. Petr Yan is petrified. Dominick Cruz is ducking me. Rob Font where you at?" said Sean O'Malley”

Cody Garbrandt, Petr Yan, Dominick Cruz and Rob Font. Sean O'Malley called them all out in his post fight interview. #UFC264pic.twitter.com/KtsoGPVKRI

— Chamatkar Sandhu (@SandhuMMA) July 11, 2021

Of the names mentioned, Petr Yan and Cody Garbrandt seem the most unlikely. Yan is scheduled to fight bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling at UFC 267. Meanwhile, Cody Garbrandt is set to move down to flyweight and is likely to face off against a 125-pound contender like Kai Kara-France.

A matchup with Rob Font is also a relatively unlikely prospect, with many expecting to see him in a number one contender showdown against Cory Sandhagen next. That leaves Dominick Cruz, who has not shown any interest in the fight so far.

Sean O'Malley has been called out by several other bantamweights, including Ricky Simon and Brian Kelleher. However, one callout that would arguably make the most sense for him to take was from Cody Stamann, who is currently the No.15 ranked man in the 135-pound division.

Regardless of which fight O'Malley takes, it seems inevitable that we will see him among the top contenders of the bantamweight division in the near future.