Sean O’Malley has announced that he’s returning to action at UFC 247, where he’ll take on Jose Quinonez.
‘The Suga Show’ is looking to get underway once more. After being derailed due to a USADA doping test failure, Sean O’Malley is hoping to finally get back in the octagon — this time at UFC 247.
Announcing the news himself via Instagram, O’Malley has revealed that he’ll appear on the PPV card this February against Jose Quinonez. The pair had been scheduled to compete at UFC 229 in 2018, until a positive test for ostarine, a common contaminant in athletic supplements, saw O’Malley sidelined.
After an initial six month suspension was handed down by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, it looked like it would be smooth sailing. But a July match-up with Marlon Vera was nixxed as well, when ostarine was again found in O’Malley’s system. Recent changes to the UFC’s anti-doping policy, however, regarding low-level, trace amounts of banned substances, appear to have helped facilitate the young bantamweight’s return.
Prior to his drug test woes, O’Malley had been undefeated in the octagon, and his career. A perfect 10-0 record will follow him to UFC 247 in Houston. However, between injury issues and suspensions, O’Malley has not fought since UFC 222 in 2018, where he engaged in a Fight of the Night effort against Andre Soukhamthath.
Since first being scheduled to face off with Sean O’Malley, Jose Quinonez (8-3) has split a pair of fights, losing via submission to Nathaniel Wood, while earning a unanimous decision win over Carlos Huachin at UFC Mexico City this past September.
UFC 247, headlined by Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes, takes place February 8, 2020 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
