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Sean O'Malley is scheduled for the toughest fight of his career this Saturday. In the UFC 292 main event, he will take on consensus bantamweight GOAT Aljamain Sterling for the division's crown jewel: the bantamweight championship. Unfortunately, 'Funk Master' has had a stranglehold on the title.
But 'Sugar' fancies his chances against Sterling, citing his belief in his striking and ability to find his foe's chin due to his on-paper advantage on the feet. However, many are worried about Sean O'Malley's chances due to Aljamain Sterling's wrestling and grappling threat, including Michael Bisping.
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The former UFC middleweight champion isn't the only former English UFC fighter to doubt O'Malley's chances against Sterling, took to his official YouTube channel to express his concern over how 'Sugar' will deal with Sterling's octagon control, saying (at 5:31 minutes) the following:
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"O'Malley needs to be in perpetual motion, okay? He cannot back up. You know the black line, you know about this. That's the warning line. If an opponent shoots on you there, they might not get the takedown, but they can drive you up against the fence. From there they can go to a single-leg, they can go to a body-lock, double-legs, so on, so forth, high-crotch, you name it."
Michael Bisping also highlighted how quickly Aljamain Sterling finished Cory Sandhagen, a former interim title challenger, due to the latter's mistake in backing himself up to the fence. If Sean O'Malley hopes to win Saturday's headliner, he must remain mobile, while simultaneously refusing to cede ground.
Sean O'Malley's beef with Merab Dvalishvili
The matchup between Sean O'Malley and Aljamain Sterling on UFC 292 has an extra layer of animosity to it due to 'Sugar's' issues with the latter's close friend, Merab Dvalishvili. After Aljamain Sterling defended his title against a returning Henry Cejudo, an in-cage face-off was conducted between him and 'Sugar.'
When Sterling and O'Malley began trash-talking at each other, 'Sugar' took off his own jacket, unwittingly handed it to Dvalishvili, who promptly wore it, to the delight of the MMA world. However, upon O'Malley noticing the transgression, it almost sparked a brawl. Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed.
