Sean O’Malley can look back on his brief title reign with a smirk on his face.
Back in 2023, O’Malley was riding high with a shocking second-round knockout of Aljamain Sterling to become UFC bantamweight
champion. Six months later, he avoided being one-and-done with a convincing unanimous decision win over Marlon “Chito” Vera, a result that also served to avenge O’Malley’s lone loss.
O’Malley went on to lose a pair of title fights to current champion Merab Dvalishvili, and even O’Malley seems to be aware that he was fortunate not to fight Dvalishvili sooner. Discussing Jack Della Maddalena’s one-sided decision loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 322 this past Saturday, O’Malley believes “JDM” got a raw deal having his first title defense come against arguably the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in all of MMA.
“That was very high level,” O’Malley said on The BrO’Malley Show. “Islam moving up from 155 to 170, fighting JDM the champ. Poor JDM, he goes out there, he gets the belt, he wins the belt, and the first title defense is Islam.
“Fortunate for me, I win the belt, they gave me Chito. Woo! We got the game wrapped up on our finger there.”
Makhachev was so dominant against Della Maddalena, it raised the question of whether the former lightweight champion can go on another lengthy run in a second division. Welterweight contenders Michael Morales and Carlos Prates also impressed with highlight-reel knockouts Saturday, so if Makhachev decides to stick around at 170 pounds, he has no shortage of worthy challengers with which to build his résumé.
However, O’Malley wonders if it’s Ilia Topuria, the former featherweight champion who claimed Makhachev’s vacant lightweight title, that still presents the biggest threat to the new welterweight king.
“When you have someone that can take you down and you can’t get back up, it changes the way you can fight,” Makhachev said. “It changes your abilities and you saw that Islam, one of the greatest of all time. The question is does he do that to Ilia Topuria?
“Ilia’s 5-foot-5, I feel like him being so short’s going to make it harder for Islam to get in on the shots. Maybe, maybe not. This is just thinking out loud, but does he go out there and do that to Ilia, too?”
O’Malley maintained a sympathetic tone discussing Della Maddalena’s disappointing loss, which isn’t surprising given O’Malley knows what it’s like to be foiled by relentless wrestling, with Dvalishili grappling him into oblivion in both of their fights.
The fact that Della Maddalena made it to the final bell is a moral victory in O’Malley’s eyes.
“It’s crazy how much damage he didn’t take and how good of a job he did not getting submitted,” O’Malley said. “It sucks that’s the takeaway, but that was very impressive for him not to get submitted. … It was very good, but at the end of the day you’re still on your back, it’s still nothing. Nothing you can do about that. Unfortunate for JDM.”
TOP STORIES
Report. The MMA Fighting crew breaks down all the big storylines in the aftermath of UFC 322.
Heartbreak. JDM’s coach sums up how the fighter and his team are feeling after UFC 322 loss: “It hurts like hell.”
Next. Signs point to Islam Makhachev’s first welterweight title defense being against Kamaru Usman.
More. Magomed Zaynukov a.k.a. “Chanco” a.k.a. “John Pork” has one regret about Dillon Danis brawl: That Danis wasn’t roughed up more.
Promotion. Dana White scoffs at the concept of “Dana White privilege.”
VIDEO STEW
On to the Next One.
Jorge Masvidal has a lot to say about Dillon Danis and he sneaks in a message for his old pal Leon Edwards, too.
Seems obvious, but still worth a deep dive.
Get primed for UFC Qatar.
SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE
Don’t stir the Makhachev hive.
I’d still watch.
Persistence pays off!
Ooooooh.
Progress.
On to the next one.
FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Anthony Joshua vs. Jake Paul; Dec. 19
Gable Steveson (1-0) vs. Jake Hein (2-1); Anthony Pettis FC 21, Nov. 23
FINAL THOUGHTS
Sure, one could argue its bad luck that JDM had to fight Makhachev, but it was also a huge opportunity for him to instantly cement himself as one of the UFC’s premier stars. Let’s also remember that JDM was the beneficiary of great luck when he ended up stumbling into the Belal Muhammad title fight in the first place (and subsequently took care of business!).
The game is the game.
EXIT POLL
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