Sean O’Malley isn’t looking to kick a man while he’s down, but he did have some thoughts on Cody Garbrandt’s knockout loss at UFC 269.
It was a tale of two very different nights when it comes to how things went for O’Malley (15-1) and Garbrandt (12-5) this past Saturday. Both competed on the main card of the UFC’s latest pay-per-view offering and both of their fights ended with a knockout. Unfortunately for “No Love”, he was on the wrong end of the fight ending finish in his flyweight debut against Kai Kara-France. While O’Malley earned his eleventh KO in 15 career victories.
The contrast between the two, and the different directions their careers are going, is even more notable after the pair had a mild altercation at the UFC 269 press conference. As “Sugar” stoked the fires of interest for a future showdown between him and the former bantamweight champion. That seems unlikely now with the 30-year-old having lost five of his last six.
Sean O’Malley talks Cody Garbrandt’s KO loss at UFC 269
Yet that didn’t stop O’Malley from giving some thoughts about Garbrant’s fourth KO loss in as many years. The newly ranked 135-pound star wasn’t looking to pile on more hate towards a fighter that is likely stressed from a plethora of losses over the last few years. But he did suggest Garbrandt is probably battling a great deal of self-doubt at the moment.
“Cody got dropped again. It’s like, dude, I don’t even want to sit here and say anything. I’m sure Cody’s dealing with some serious f*cking like, some serious demons right now,” O’Malley said in a new video post to his Sugar Sean YouTube channel. “He’s probably questioning a lot of things. And I don’t want to f*cking add on to that.”
During a discussion between O’Malley and his co-host, and coach, Tim Welch about appreciating the talent of Kara-France and how the fight played out, “Sugar” made a point to note what seemed like a turning point in Garbrandt’s career. When he was referred to as the Mike Tyson of the bantamweight division in 2017.
“I think ever since he said he was the Mike Tyson of the bantamweight division, it went downhill from there,” said O’Malley.
In truth, Garbrandt’s coach Justin Buckholz originally referred to him as having a “Mike Tyson mentality” in the lead-up to his 2016 championship victory over division legend Dominick Cruz. However, since that time he has had a 1-5 record and three first-round KO defeats.
Do you agree that the Mike Tyson comparisons may have jinxed Garbrandt’s career ever since?
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