MMA Preview – Raulian Paiva vs Sean O’Malley at UFC 269
RAULIAN PAIVA VS SEAN O’MALLEY FACTS
When is UFC 269? Sunday 12th December, 2021 - 01:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC 269? T-Mobile Arena, Paradise, Nevada (US)
Where can I get tickets for UFC 269? Click here to buy tickets for UFC 268
What channel is UFC 269 on? BT Sport 2
Where can I stream UFC 269? BT Sport subscribers can stream the fight online via the BT Sport website
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
RAULIAN PAIVA VS SEAN O’MALLEY LOWDOWN
After losing his first two UFC fights, Raulian Paiva (21-3) is back on the march winning three on the bounce to prop up his attractive record. He lost a split decision to Kai Kara-France (2019) on his debut and then got knocked out by Rogerio Bontorin (2019). He showed a lot of character returning to starch Mark De La Rosa (2020) and followed it up with decisions over Zhalgas Zhumagulov (2020) and Kyler Phillips (2021) where he moved up at bantamweight.
Sean O’Malley (14-1) is the man assigned for Paiva’s second fight in the division. To O’Malley’s credit, the ‘Suga Show’ has not lost much steam after his high-profile loss to Marlon Vera (2020) although O’Malley, did not feel humbled, treating the kick that disabled his leg as a freak accident. He smoked Jose Quinonez (2020) and Eddie Wineland (2020) before that fight and continued where he left off by knocking out Thomas Almeida (2021) and Kris Moutinho (2021).
RAULIAN PAIVA VS SEAN O’MALLEY PREDICTION
As good as Paiva’s record looks, he only has one impressive win in the books. No bantamweights will be impressed with wins over flyweights De La Rosa and Zhumagulov but moving up to 135 lbs and outpointing the top prospect Phillips was hugely impressive.
That said, it is still a surprise to see him paired with O’Malley although it makes sense for the UFC to see O’Malley collect a few more wins on pay-per-view cards. Paiva has relied on his striking so far in the UFC, but if he decides to stand and trade with O’Malley, he is going to look like an amateur.
O’Malley has good jiu-jitsu but if the Brazilian can get him down, his black belt skills will be a serious threat. Even he if wrestles for three rounds to close the distance, he has a chance, but we expect O’Malley to conduct the distance and tempo, leveraging his three-inch height and reach advantage, breaking Paiva down with all eight limbs to set up a late knockout.
Prediction: O’Malley via KO/TKO - CLICK HERE FOR PARIMATCH'S WELCOME OFFER (BET £5, GET £30 IN BONUSES!)
