LAS VEGAS – Sean O'Malley keeps on rolling.
Kicking off the UFC 269 main card in style, O’Malley (15-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) finished Raulian Paiva (21-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC) with a barrage of punches at 4:42 of Round 1.
UFC 269 took place Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.
From the opening bell, O’Malley dictated the dance. He dipped in and out with a funky style, technically out-striking the smaller Brazilian. With his jab on point and his footwork quick, O’Malley connected with a series of punches that stunned Paiva late in Round 1.
Paiva was never able to recover as he absorbed blow after blow. He hung tough and did not go unconscious but referee Jason Herzog saw the fighter take enough unanswered strikes to waive off the fight.
SEAN O'MALLEY ADDING TO THE HIGHLIGHT REEL 🤯 #UFC269 pic.twitter.com/TO5hOfbV6Y
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) December 12, 2021
Outside of a loss to Marlon Vera, in which he suffered a leg injury, O’Malley has not lost any other of his promotional appearances. Since his breakthrough performance on Dana White’s Contender Series in July 2017, O’Malley has picked up wins over the likes of Thomas Almeida, Eddie Wineland, and Kris Moutinho among others.
The loss for Paiva snaps a three-fight winning streak, which included victories over Mark De La Rosa, Zhalgas, Zhumagulov, and Kyler Phillips. UFC 269 marked the second time Paiva competed at bantamweight in the promotion, as his first four promotional appearances took place at flyweight.
Up-to-the-minute results of UFC 269 include:
- Sean O’Malley def. Raulian Paiva via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:42
- Josh Emmett def. Dan Ige via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Dominick Cruz def. Pedro Munhoz via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Tai Tuivasa def. Augusto Sakai via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 0:26
- Bruno Silva def. Jordan Wright via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:28
- Andre Muniz def. Eryk Anders via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 3:13
- Erin Blanchfield def. Miranda Maverick via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Ryan Hall def. Darrick Minner via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-27)
- Tony Kelley def. Randy Costa via TKO (elbows) – Round 2, 4:15
- Gillian Robertson def. Priscila Cachoeira via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 4:59
