Sean O’Malley, the UFC bantamweight champion, remains steadfast in his denial of his only professional loss. This loss happened against Marlon Vera in 2020, but O’Malley refuses to accept it to this date. The athlete places the blame on a fluke injury – a damaged peroneal nerve which he claims was accidentally caused by Vera’s low kick to his leading leg. The injury had paved the way for Vera to further inflict a series of ground-and-pound attacks, ultimately leading to his TKO victory.
Another match has been scheduled between O’Malley and Vera in March, as part of the main event of UFC 299. O’Malley is not just prepared to defend his title, but his conviction. He is adamant that Vera cannot replicate the nerve-damaging kick and has promised to accept his first loss only if history repeats itself. O’Malley’s bold assertions make it clear that he has immense confidence in his capabilities and potential for the rematch, suggesting that Vera’s previous win was purely down to luck.
Moreover, O’Malley presents himself as a daunting challenge and openly taunts Vera. On “The MMA Hour”, he argued that Vera would not be able to keep up with his speed during the fight. According to him, Vera’s only win was a lucky strike and he asserts that his competitor is well-aware of this fact. He adds that he sees fear in Vera and anticipates that he will be nervous throughout the fight.
The fight between O’Malley and Vera was set up largely due to their shared history. Vera won the title shot due to his win over Pedro Munhoz in August after experiencing a split-decision defeat against Cory Sandhagen in March. However, O’Malley appeared unimpressed with Vera’s performance against Sandhagen, raising questions about his abilities and anticipating a similar scenario in their impending fight.