Not everyone apparently believes last night’s bout between Marlon Vera and Sean O’Malley should have been stopped when it was. But, “Chito” claims there’s no question “Sugar” was done when the fight was halted.
Vera says O’Malley was “snoring”
Vera faced the rising bantamweight in the co-main event of UFC 252, in a fight that was almost certainly made to move O’Malley into another sphere of stardom. Knowledgeable observers understood that Vera would pose a stiff test for “Sugar”, but the latter was a huge favorite to win the fight heading in.
Things went off the rails for O’Malley in round one, however, as he incurred a leg injury after stumbling. Not long after, with O’Malley now on the floor, Vera brought about the ref’s stoppage with a couple of shots from above.
While talking about the end of the fight during the post-fight presser, Vera argued there was no question the fight was over (quotes via MMA Fighting).
“The guy was snoring,” Vera said. “When I landed the second elbow, he was making noises, he was out. And then when Herb Dean got in the middle, you could see [O’Malley’s] head bounce back.
I see his corner saying, ‘No, that was too early.’ We make eye contact and I was like, ‘You know that sh*t wasn’t early,’ and the guy was pretty quiet all of a sudden.
“That guy was talking sh*t while we were getting ready to walk to the cage.
He was yelling, ‘He’s slow.’ It’s like, dude, it’s a fu**ing fight, if you want to try to get in my head, you’ve got to try harder than that.
So I was just like, the only way to make you pay is fu**ing your kid up.”
And what about the fact O’Malley injured his leg? Shortly before the fight’s final moments?
Vera reportedly believes a kick he landed contributed to what went down. When asked about O’Malley’s injury, “Chit” said it was on account of a “hard calf kick”.
Early stoppage?
You can understand why some O’Malley boosters might think Dean jumped in too early. But, considering all the circumstances, it’s probably good he did.
Would O’Malley have worked his way through the barrage of strikes Vera would have tossed down? Argument over whether he incurred a flash KO aside? Maybe.
Would he have gone on to win the fight? By the looks of the injury, it seems very, very, unlikely. In other words, Dean almost certainly saved O’Malley from taking more needless, punishment.