NBA superstar hails new UFC champ Sean O’Malley – “Suga Sean really a different beast”

Kevin Durant was all praise for Sean O’Malley after ‘Suga’s title win last weekend. The 28-year-old Montana native defeated Aljamain Sterling via an incredible second-round knockout at UFC 282 in Boston.

While neither fighter committed too much early on in the fight, Sterling was able to secure a clinch and land some punches before the bell rang. The ‘Funk Master’ won the first round on all three judges’ scorecards. In the second round, Sterling rushed in with a left hand, looking for O’Malley’s face. However, ‘Suga’ was looking for that opening and countered with a cracking overhand right to drop Sterling to the canvas. 

Sean O’Malley followed up with a barrage of shots that forced the referee to step in and stop the contest 51 seconds into the second round. O’Malley handed Sterling his first loss since 2017, ending the ‘Funk Master’s nine-fight win streak. He is now the second Dana White’s Contender Series alum to win UFC gold. 

After his win, many notable sports personalities praised O’Malley for his performance. Among them was Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant, who took to Twitter and wrote:

“Suga Sean really a different beast. Salute that man.”

Marlon Vera calls for title rematch against Sean O’Malley after UFC 292 

Marlon Vera wants to run it back with the new UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley after the UFC 292 event. ‘Chito’ remains the only fighter to hand O’Malley a professional MMA loss. They last faced each other at UFC 252 in August 2020, where Vera secured a first-round knockout over ‘Suga.’

After Sean O’Malley got the 135-pound belt wrapped around his waist, he called out Marlon Vera for a rematch at UFC 296 in December. Considering Vera also picked up a unanimous decision victory against Pedro Munhoz at UFC 292, the Ecuadorian was keen to accept the callout. 

Taking to Twitter, Marlon Vera urged the UFC to book the matchup and wrote:

“Send me contract, ok.”

He followed up with another tweet claiming to fight for the undisputed bantamweight title soon and wrote:

“Fighting for a world title very soon.”

Given how top bantamweight contenders Merab Dvalishvili and Cory Sandhagen are currently sidelined with injuries, a Sean O’Malley vs. Marlon Vera matchup seems quite likely. It remains to be seen who O’Malley’s first title defense will be.