Sean O’Malley successfully defended his bantamweight title and avenged his previous loss to Marlon Vera tonight at UFC 299, outclassing him in the striking department over five rounds to win by unanimous decision.
Round One:
The bantamweight title headliner is underway in Miami!
Calf kick from O’Malley to start. Front kick to the body from O’Malley and then another calf kick. Oblique kick to the knee.
Inside leg kick from Vera. Spinning body kick for O’Malley. Another calf kick from the champ. Missed front kick to the body from Vera.
Another calf kick for O’Malley. Solid body kick connects for Vera. Inside calf kick from O’Malley. Now a step-in straight from him.
Punch to the body for O’Malley. Now he pops out the jab. Hard step-in left from O’Malley. Punch and a kick to the body from Vera. He lands a left hand too now.
Kick to the leg from Vera. Front kick to the body from O’Malley. Vera tries a hook kick but misses. O’Malley loads up on a punch but misses.
Vera tries to stomp to the leg but O’Malley is out of reach. Body punch from O’Malley. He lands another. Superman punch from Vera. Another kick to the body from O’Malley.
Jab from O’Malley and then a body punch. He misses on a power punch at the end of the round.
Round Two:
Spinning head kick attempt from O’Malley but doesn’t quite hit the mark. Body punch from O’Malley. Glancing punch from Vera. Leg kick for O’Malley. He lands a right hand too. Double-jab and then a body punch for the champ.
Solid leg kick for Vera. He pups out the jab. Punch to the midsection for O’Malley. Vera with a high kick attempt that doesn’t pay off. Good body punch for O’Malley and then a dangerous looking head kick attempt.
Nice punch for O’Malley. leg kick for Vera. Vera attempts a body kick but O’Malley catches it. He lets go though.
Right hand down the pipe for O’Malley. Now an oblique kick. Left hand for O’Malley. Body kick for O’Malley and then Vera responds with his own.
Vera steps in with a flurry of punches. One-two for O’Malley. More straight punches from him.
Body punch for O’Malley. Huge knee upstairs from O’Malley. O’Malley presses forward and throws a head kick attempt. Vera survives though, showing off his impressive chin, but he has a cut to his right cheek.
A couple of punches land for O’Malley. He’s starting to pour it on, landing a series of punches as Vera does his best to cover up and ride out the storm.
Body kick for Vera. Now a right hand for the challenger. Big kick for O’Malley. he lands to the body and then a jab upstairs. Calf kick for Vera. Vera moves in with punches but gets caught by a counter from the champ that buckles Vera for a moment.
Round Three:
Front kick to the body for O’Malley. Now a jab. Vera with a low kick. He tries one upstairs that doesn’t pay off.
Good stepping left hand from O’Malley. He targets the body. Good range management from O’Malley too here.
Both look for a leg kick. jab for O’Malley. Glancing right hand from O’Malley. He lands a kick. Missed kick from Vera.
Double-jab for O’Malley. Vera charges forward with punches, but O’Malley backs away from most of that.
Crisp jabs from O’Malley and then a straight. Body kick for Vera off a punch from O’Malley. Vera attempts a flurry, but doesn’t find a home for his work.
Heavy body punch from O’Malley. Body kick from Vera. Two left hands for O’Malley. Now a hard one-two. Back to the body. A couple of punches from vera partially land.
Calf kick for Vera. Sticking left hand for O’Malley. Front kick to the body from Vera. Left hand for O’Malley. Punch gets through Vera Punches to the body on both sides from O’Malley. Now a knee getting mixed into the equation.
O’Malley ducks a punch and then almost eats a knee. Right hand for Vera. Better from him, but then he slips on a kick to spoil his own momentum as the round draws to a close. Still, he looks fired up now as he glares at O’Malley.
Round Four:
Vera comes up short with punches as O’Malley uses his footwork to stay out of range. Front kick to the body from O’Malley. Now a crisp punch down the pipe from the champ.
O’Malley to the body and then upstairs. O’Malley landing the jab. A couple of jabs and left hand from Vera now.
Vera charges forward with punches and then a knee. For a moment O’Malley loses his composure but then gets away.
left hand for O’Malley. Vera with punches but misses the knee afterwards. Straight punches land for O’Malley now.
Jab for O’Malley. Punches from Vera come off the guard and then O’Malley trips him up.
O’Malley bleeding from the nose. Body kick for O’Malley. Now one from Vera. Jab for Vera. Body kick from O’Malley.
One-two for Vera. Body punch for O’Malley. Glancing punch for him. back to the body and then a jab for the champ.
Nice lead left for O’Malley. Low kick from Vera. Hand-fighting then a heavy punch from O’Malley.
Vera with a punch. left hand for O’Malley. Right and a left behind it for him. Body kick from Vera. Body punch for O’Malley.
Double-jab for O’Malley. He lands it again. Punches and a body kick from Vera. Right hand for O’Malley. O’Malley circles working the jab and Vera lands a low kick.
Round Five:
jab for Vera. Now O’Malley working behind his jab as he circles the challenger. Vera with a leg kick. Step-in right hand from O’Malley and Vera seems a bit troubled as he backs off. O’Malley pressing forward now but not going for broke.
Vera covering up every time O’Malley throws now. Head kick attempt comes off the guard. left hand for O’Malley.
Another left hand gets through for O’Malley. Kick from Vera. He misses on a high kick. Another left hand and then a body punch from the champ.
O’Malley unleashes a short flurry. Now a body punch. Vera gets a left hand through but he needs a lot more. Spinning body kick for Vera.
O’Malley digs to the body. Body kick for Vera. Body kick for Vera. Spinning kick to the body from O’Malley.
A jab and then body punches from O’Malley. He throws out a head kick attempt. Vera steps in with a punch but it’s blocked. Front kick to the face may have partially landed from Vera, but O’Malley seems ok.
Vera in close lands a knee. O’Malley returns fire with a series of punches and a knee.
Vera trying to march forward with punches but O’Malley slides away. Final few seconds and they trade blows, with O’Malley landing a couple of punches, but then Vera landing a thumping punch to the body that may have hurt the champ as he buckled over on impact, but that’s where the round ends and we’re headed to the scorecards to confirm his victory.
O’Malley quickly sits down in the Octagon after the final bell, adding to the evidence that final blow from Vera may have hurt him, but other than that moment he was in charge of this fight throughout.
Decision:
No doubt about the winner here then with O’Malley putting on a classy striking performance, picking apart Vera from range over five rounds to earn a unanimous decision victory (50-45 x2, 50-44).
