Sean O’Malley baffles fans with odd Song Yadong face-off stunt before UFC 324

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Sean O’Malley raised a few eyebrows during his first face-off with Song Yadong at Friday night’s UFC Seasonal Press Conference.

O’Malley, who spent three years and four bouts as a title fighter, is stepping back into the cage for his first non-title appearance in over three years. He’ll be taking on Song Yadong, who sit fifth in the bantamweight rankings after winning three of his last four fights.

The two met ahead of their bout this afternoon during a press event in Las Vegas. But it was O’Malley’s behaviour during the face-off that had viewers scratching their heads.

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The former champion is returning to action after losing his belt to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 299. The loss came via unanimous decision, breaking a six-fight win streak for O’Malley that included two title defences against Marlon Vera and Petr Yan.

Song Yadong has put together an impressive run since moving up from flyweight to bantamweight. He’s now fourth in the division after victories over Umar Nurmagomedov, Cory Sandhagen, and most recently Cody Garbrandt at UFC 299.

The card is headlined by middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis defending his belt against Jared Cannonier, while former lightweight champion Dustin Poirier faces Dan Hooker later in the night. Both men are coming off losses and need wins to stay relevant in a deep division.

Sean O’Malley wraps up uneventful press conference with odd face-off against Song Yadong

Sean O’Malley, who is usually one of the UFC’s more entertaining personalities, was noticeably subdued during Friday’s press conference. The only real highlight came when he mentioned his excitement about fighting a three-round bout again.

O’Malley has gone back to his trademark colourful hairstyles after a period of change earlier in the year. But during the face-off with Song Yadong, he had something unusual planned.

The two fighters stepped off stage briefly before their face-off. When they returned, O’Malley was wearing a surgical mask. Song Yadong later reacted on social media, posting on X: “O’Malley grabbing a covid mask is a throwback to the only stretch of his career when people liked him.”

There were some accusations of racism from fans online. However, many others saw it as harmless, with plenty of laughing emojis and memes circulating in response.