Sean O’Malley on Saturday put on a tremendous display of striking to defeat Ecuador’s Marlon “Chito” Vera by unanimous decision and retain his bantamweight title in the main event of UFC 299 at Miami’s Kaseya Centre.
O’Malley, who beat Aljamain Sterling to claim the title in August last year, suffered the only loss of his pro career to Vera that same month, going down in the first round due to a foot injury that impaired his movement.
The rematch proved a different proposition as the US’ O’Malley stayed out of trouble by putting on a striking masterclass, mixing up his shots to the head and body, and landing a thunderous knee that opened a cut under Vera’s eye late in the second round.
Photo: Sam Navarro-USA Today
Behind on the scorecards, Vera bounced back in the fourth frame, but O’Malley’s fluid movement kept him out of harm’s way and he took over again in the fifth and final round to cruise to victory.
“Chito’s as tough as it gets, it feels good getting that one back,” O’Malley said in a post-fight interview in the cage before calling out featherweight champ Ilia Topuria.
Spain’s Topuria claimed the belt with a second-round knockout win over Alexander Volkanovski in February, prompting O’Malley to call on the UFC to fly him there for a showdown.
“I’m here for whatever ... but that’s an exciting fight for the people,” he said.
In the comain event, former interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier scored a superb second-round knockout to defeat Benoit Saint Denis, flooring the Frenchman with a right hook midway through the second frame to end the fight.
Saint Denis, a former operative in the French special forces, set a frenetic pace throughout and looked dominant until the US’ Poirier turned the tide with his boxing, landing the thunderous shots that paved the way to his KO win.
Tainan TSG Hawks slugger Steven Moya, who is leading the CPBL in home runs, has withdrawn from this weekend’s All-Star Game after the unexpected death of his wife. Moya’s wife began feeling severely unwell aboard a plane that landed at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday evening. She was rushed to a hospital, but passed away, the Hawks said in a statement yesterday. The franchise is assisting Moya with funeral arrangements and hopes fans who were looking forward to seeing him at the All-Star Game can understand his decision to withdraw. According to Landseed Medical Clinic, whose staff attempted to save Moya’s wife,
The Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday acquired Taiwanese-American outfielder Stuart Fairchild from the Atlanta Braves for cash considerations to fill the roster after All-Star second baseman Brandon Lowe was placed back on the injured list. Fairchild was designated for assignment by the Braves on Monday after hitting .216/.273/.333 in 28 games for Atlanta, with most of his work coming as a pinch runner or defensive replacement. He joins Tampa Bay as a versatile fourth outfielder option. To make room for Fairchild on the 40-man roster, the Rays transferred relief pitcher Manuel Rodriguez (forearm strain) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day
Ukrainian coal miner Andrii’s face lit up when he talked about meeting Oleksandr Usyk. “Wow,” the 36-year-old said in English. Andrii and more than a dozen other war veterans were on hand when Usyk beat Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium on Saturday night to become the undisputed world heavyweight champion. It was a rematch of their 2023 bout that Andrii viewed under vastly different circumstances. “I watched this fight on the front line on my phone,” he said through an interpreter during a stop on Friday at the Ukrainian Embassy in London. “We were watching very quietly, but when he won there was loud
PENALTY MISS: ‘We practiced penalties,’ Spain coach Montse Tome said, while both her team’s spot-kicks were saved by Switzerland’s goalkeeper Livia Peng Spain ended Switzerland’s dreamy midsummer run through its home Women’s European Championship in a 2-0 win in the quarter-finals on Friday despite missing two penalty kicks. Swiss resistance was broken by the world champion’s two goals in a five-minute spell midway through the second half. Athenea Del Castillo slotted in a shot from Aitana Bonmati’s flicked assist in the 66th, just four minutes after coming off the bench, and Claudia Pina curled a shot from the edge of the penalty area in the 71st. Spain are to play France or Germany in the semi-finals in Zurich on Wednesday. The winner would face defending
RSS