Author: mmafighting

Sean O’Malley still reigns supreme. Four years after his only MMA loss, “Sugar” avenged that setback in style, outclassing Marlon Vera with a pillar-to-post masterclass at UFC 299. O’Malley’s first defense of his UFC bantamweight title headlined an action-packed return to Miami’s Kaseya Center, which also included a statement win from a lightweight legend, the emerging of several new contenders, plus much more. With so much to discuss, let’s dive right into our seven biggest takeaways from UFC 299. 1. Love him or hate him, Sean O’Malley continues to be a man of his word. When the UFC bantamweight champ…

Dustin Poirier had a lot riding on his fight at UFC 299. On paper, he probably shouldn’t have even entertained a matchup against a prospect like Benoit Saint Denis, who came into the night off five straight finishes but without any wins over top 10 ranked competition. What’s more, Saint Denis’ overall resume paled in comparison to Poirier. But the former interim lightweight champion didn’t blink, and ultimately, he ended up capturing the “Fight of the Night” for putting Saint Denis away in the second round with a devastating knockout. After the event ended, UFC CEO Dana White praised Poirier…

Mike Perry wishes he would be Jake Paul’s next opponent in the boxing ring, but he’s happy to see Mike Tyson get a big payday, and perhaps turn back the clock. Paul and Tyson will compete in a boxing match July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, headlining an event that will stream exclusively on Netflix for subscribers. Perry — who is preparing to face Thiago Alves in the main event of BKFC’s Knucklemania 4 on April 27 — gave his reaction to the booking that was officially announced on Thursday. “I was like, damn, get that bag, Mike,”…

Sean O’Malley never conceded a loss to Chito Vera at UFC 252, official results be damned. But after dominating Vera in their rematch at UFC 299, O’Malley is declaring himself unbeaten as a professional MMA fighter. “The Sugar State Athletic Commission, they said if I win this fight, they’ll take away that first fight away, so I’m officially undefeated again,” O’Malley told reporters at the post-fight press conference for UFC 299, which took place Saturday at Kaseya Center in Miami. “It feels really really good, so we’re just 1-0 right now.” The Sugar State Athletic Commission is, of course, a…

This is the UFC 299 live blog for Sean O’Malley vs. Marlon Vera 2, the bantamweight title fight on Saturday in Miami. Pegged as a future superstar since an impressive knockout performance on Contender Series in 2017, O’Malley finally delivered on all his promise with a sensational knockout over Aljamain Sterling to claim the bantamweight title. Now in his first defense he takes on the only man to defeat him inside the octagon. One of the most popular fighters in the bantamweight division and the pride of Ecuador, Marlon Vera could not have expected to be here even a year…

Sean O’Malley avenged his only career loss with a dominant showing over Chito Vera at UFC 299. O’Malley shut out Vera on the scorecards – 50-45, 50-45 and 50-44 – to notch his first title defense and erase one of the only blemishes on his pro MMA career, a TKO loss to Vera in 2020 that came after an ankle injury. Vera caught O’Malley at the very end of the fight with a body shot that appeared to badly hurt the champ. But it was largely one-way traffic through 25 minutes as O’Malley outclassed his opponent. Here’s what fighters had…

Sean O’Malley is still the UFC bantamweight champion after delivering a spectacular bell-to-bell performance in his first title defense, a rematch with Marlon Vera in the main event of UFC 299. After sweeping scorecards for all three judges, will O’Malley’s next fight be a title defense against Merab Dvalishvili, or will “The Sugar Show” head to the featherweight division for a clash with new champ Ilia Topuria? Following Saturday’s memorable night of fights in Miami, MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck, Jed Meshew, and Eric Jackman react to O’Malley’s tremendous showing, his post-fight callout of Topuria, and how he matches up with…

Dustin Poirier is now tied with Edson Barboza for most “Fight of the Night” bonuses after his thrilling showdown with Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 299. Poirier survived tough waters in the first round to starch Saint Denis in the second, thrilling the crowd to earn an additional $50,000 with “Fight of the Night.” At 9 “FOTN” bonuses, Poirier is now tied with Barboza for most in promotional history. UFC CEO Dana White announced Poirier and Saint Denis’ post-fight bonus at the press conference for UFC 299, which took place Saturday at Kaseya Center in Miami. In another positive development,…

Sean O’Malley never wanted to count a past loss to Marlon “Chito” Vera on his record but he still got his revenge with a dominant performance in the UFC 299 main event. If not for Vera’s iron chin and unbreakable will, O’Malley would have almost assuredly gone home with a finish on his record but instead he’ll leave Miami with a lopsided unanimous decision win. Round after round, O’Malley blasted away with a devastating arsenal on the feet and by the end of the fight Vera was busted up, bloodied and swelled to the point where it looked like his…

Watch Sean O’Malley vs. Chito Vera 2 full fight video highlights from the main event of UFC 299, courtesy of the UFC and other outlets.UFC 299: O’Malley vs. Vera 2 took place March 9 at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley (18-1, 1 NC) put his belt on the line in a rematch against Marlon Vera (23-9-1) in the night’s main event. The fight aired live on ESPN+ pay-per-view.Catch the video highlights below. Round 1: “Chi-to” chants can be heard as the bout begins. Both men out in orthodox. They will switch a lot. And…