Tim Welch, the head coach of Sean O’Malley, has an intriguing prediction for ‘Suga’s’ UFC 324 fight.
O’Malley is set to return to the Octagon at UFC 324 on January 24 against Song Yadong in an intriguing fight. Heading into the bout, O’Malley is a -215 favorite while Yadong is a +164 underdog on FanDuel.
Although O’Malley is the betting favorite, Welch knows Yadong is a tough out and a tough fight. However, Welch has full confidence in O’Malley and believes he will get his hand raised, but it may be by decision.
“We are planning for a 15-minute brutal war,” Welch said to Home of Fight. “He’s similar to Chito (Vera). He’s way faster than Chito, he’s got more spring than Chito, and he’s a little bit more dangerous. He can KO you for sure. Again, Sug’s a KO artist. When you are a KO artist, you go in there and start sitting down on punches, and really try and crack people.
“We are preparing for him to be there for 15 minutes. So, we are preparing to beat his body up, to cut his face, to punch his head, potentially choke him, maybe take him down, ride him a little bit. We are preparing for a 15-minute war. In my heart, we are going to whoop his ass for 15 minutes.”
Intriguingly, Welch isn’t predicting a finish win for Sean O’Malley at UFC 324. But, he does expect O’Malley to have a dominant performance to prove he’s still an elite-level bantamweight.
Coach believes Sean O’Malley can earn a title shot after UFC 324
If O’Malley gets his hand raised at UFC 324 and it is dominant, Welch believes he could earn a title shot.
“In the back of our minds, for sure that is a possibility,” Welch added. “I do think that will bring out the best performance. When that fight happened, he lit up; he saw there was another opportunity there. But, again, careful (what you wish for). Petr Yan for five rounds, we are going to have to be ready for that.”
Of course, O’Malley and Yan have history, which could lead to ‘Suga’ getting the next title shot.
Do you think Sean O’Malley will beat Song Yadong at UFC 324? Let us know in the comment section, PENN Nation!
