UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley has given his thoughts on his close split decision win over Petr Yan at UFC 280.
O’Malley earned a 29-28 decision on two of the judges’ scorecards to knock down the former champion Yan. While the fight exceeded competitive expectations, a majority of fans and pundits feel Yan deserved to get the nod and the victory.
O’Malley is the No. 1 bantamweight contender in the latest UFC bantamweight rankings. He could potentially earn a title shot next, although the promotion may opt to give the returning Cejudo the next shot at Aljamain Sterling.
The debate surrounding O’Malley vs. Yan has swirled since UFC 280’s conclusion, and O’Malley feels calling it a robbery isn’t justified.
Sean O’Malley Denies Petr Yan Win Was A ‘Robbery’
During a recent episode of the BROMALLEY podcast, O’Malley dismissed the ‘robbery’ narrative.
“A robbery? The third round I won, second round he won, first round was close as fuck and I did more damage,” O’Malley said. “It’s not really a robbery. It was a close fight. It was a really, really, really close fight.”
O’Malley then revealed what went through his mind as he waited for the official decision.
“I was just okay with whatever happened,” O’Malley said when asked for his thoughts just before the scores were announced. I just got punched in the fucking head, I don’t know how the fight played out. Obviously I didn’t fucking watch it, but back when I went back and watched it I said yeah it was close, I get it. If that was Cory vs. Petr or anyone else vs. Petr and they got the nod, I wonder how much the narrative changed.”
The consequences of O’Malley’s victory may be greater than most realize. After a second-straight split decision loss, Yan is reportedly considering his future career options and a potential leave from the UFC.
O’Malley hasn’t been on the wrong end of a decision so far during his UFC tenure. His lone defeat was against Marlon Vera at UFC 252 via TKO, although he has dismissed it due to a leg injury he suffered in the fight.
The scoring of O’Malley vs. Yan will likely be a hot topic for months to come and highlights the possible need for some degree of change in MMA judging and scoring.
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