The UFC returns with a bang for 2026 this weekend as UFC 324 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, headlined by an interim lightweight title fight between Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett.
It was also supposed to be the night that saw Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes go toe-to-toe for the women’s bantamweight title, but after the champ suffered a neck injury that required surgery, former men’s bantamweight champion ‘Suga’ Sean O’Malley‘s fight against Song Yadong was promoted to the co-main event slot for the night.
We’ll take a look at the main event and break down each fighter to provide you with our best free UFC betting picks, and try to earn you some extra cash while you take in the action in the cage.
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A very interesting fight for the landscape of the bantamweight division as former champion O’Malley returns to the cage for the first time since a second consecutive defeat to Merab Dvalishvili.
Prior to those losses, ‘Suga’ was on a roll, defeating Petr Yan, who is now the new champion of the division, before winning the title from long-time champion Aljamain Sterling via a second-round knockout, and then defending his title against rival Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera in a dominant decision victory.
Heading into this bout, the Arizona native has a professional record of 18-3 with one no contest, which includes a sensational 12 knockout victories in his career too. But there will be big question marks about how he enters the cage coming off back-to-back defeats, and whether his time at the top of the division has already come and gone.
Yadong, on the other hand, has always been an incredibly highly-rated fighter in the division, but he is still awaiting that marquee victory on his resume to earn him household name status.
The Chinese fighter comes into this bout with a professional record of 22-8-1 and one no contest, including nine wins by knockout. He has got some wins over big names, including Marlon Vera back in 2020, Marlon Moraes and Ricky Simon via knockout, while his last fight saw him defeat former champion and Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo via technical decision.
But he has also struggled against some top fighters in his career too, including Cory Sandhagen and Petr Yan, and that will leave plenty doubting whether or not he can make the step up to championship level.
Fans have every right to be very excited about this fight because stylistically, it should provide fireworks.
Both fighters are at their best when standing on their feet in a striking battle, with lightning speed and both genuinely having one-punch knockout power at their disposal. However, Song is also a steady wrestler when needed, and O’Malley has got great experience and quality in the grappling department when he needs to call upon it.
O’Malley is likely to take the center and force Song backwards, because there he can dominate the range of the fight and he knows his opponent’s strengths are nullified as a result. But Song will be looking to do the same, and if O’Malley isn’t at his best, he could be forced to circle the outside and look to counter.
Whoever takes control of the center of the cage will have the best chance of victory, but it’s also fair to say that if the fight is strictly a stand-up bout then ‘Suga’ has the advantage across the 15 minutes.
He is more powerful, faster, has a better variety of strikes in his arsenal, and also knows what being on the big stage feels like. If Song wants to throw a spanner in the works, he needs to mix in some grappling and be aggressive, in a similar way to how Merab was able to suffocate him with pressure.
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The bantamweight title picture is wide open after Yan captured the belt from Merab in December, and O’Malley now has an open route back to the top as a result.
A victory for the 31-year-old would put him right back in the mix for the championship, as he already has a victory over Yan which the champ would surely love to get back.
That should surely be motivation enough for O’Malley to get back to winning ways, but it’s also fair to state that it won’t come easily. Yadong knows that a win over O’Malley could do the same for him, and he will give everything.
With that said, O’Malley should have too much for Song in this bout. At this stage of their careers, O’Malley is the more complete and dangerous fighter of the two, and with Song having to come forward it makes him more vulnerable to being clipped.
O’Malley is a great price at -200 to get the win, but there is tremendous value on a knockout at +325, so take that while you can.
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About the Author
Daniel is a football writer who has a great thirst for the Premier League and other major European leagues. A lover of the beautiful game and a firm believer that the eye test is better than statistics. Also an avid MMA fan.
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