Sean O'Malley to Miss at Least 6 Months for Surgery on Hip Injury After UFC 306 Loss

After losing the UFC bantamweight title to Merab Dvalishvili in the main event of UFC 306 on Saturday, Sean O'Malley won't be back in the Octagon for quite a while.

Per ESPN's Brett Okamoto, the 29-year-old is set to undergo hip surgery in the first week of October that will rule him out for "anywhere from six months to one year."

O'Malley, who became champion in August 2023, lost the 135-pound title to Dvalishvili by unanimous decision to close out Saturday's show at the Sphere in Las Vegas.

He explained his upcoming absence while speaking to online streamer Adin Ross.

"I have surgery on Oct. 3," O'Malley said. "I tore my left labrum in my hip. That's the only reason I'm going to be out for so long. This surgery should only take two months to come back from, then a couple months recovery. A year is a long time, could be six to eight months. You never know."

O'Malley said on his podcast with his head coach Tim Welsh that it could be a year before he fights again.

O'Malley has established himself as one of the biggest stars in the UFC in recent years, but he was completely outclassed by Dvalishvili in Saturday's main event. The Georgian outstruck his opponent 214 to 49 and scored multiple takedowns on his way to winning the title.

O'Malley added during his podcast that his hip injury had nothing to do with his performance against Dvalishvili.

"Best weight cut, felt good, no excuses," he said. "My mom, she's like, 'You just weren't the same, what was wrong?' Nothing. I just got beat. Everyone keeps asking me, 'Something seemed off.' No excuses."

By the time O'Malley is healthy enough to return, he could quickly put himself in a position to fight for the title if he's able to get back to his winning ways.