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UFC No.2-ranked bantamweight contender Sean O'Malley was in attendance at UFC 288 where the bantamweight title was on the line in the main event between Aljamain Sterling and Henry Cejudo.
A closely contested bout was ruled in the champion's favor via a split decision. O'Malley himself felt that Cejudo was the victor of the headliner fight and stated that he had 'Triple C' clear of Sterling before the start of the last round.
In the post-event press conference, 'Sugar' suggested that the venue had some influence over the judges scorecards. UFC 288 was held in the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
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O'Malley said:
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“I thought Henry was up three [to] one going into the fifth [round]. I was honestly pretty surprised that Aljo won. I thought Henry did what he needed to do. We’re in New York. We’re in New Jersey, I mean… I thought he [Cejudo] won, I thought Henry looked good. I didn’t think he would come into this fight not in shape, not ready to go. I thought he won the fight.”
Aljamain Sterling trains and fights out of the Serra-Longo Fight Team's gyms based in Long Island in New York.
Check out O'Malley's comments on the scoring below:
Fans react to Sean O'Malley's comments on UFC 288 main event scoring
Sean O'Malley's comments drew a host of reactions from fans, who were themselves left divided over the UFC 288 scoring of the main event.
Fans presented their case for Aljamain Sterling being the victor.
"Close fight but it was 100% an aljo win. Aljo round 1,2,4, Henry 3 & 5."
"3-1 Henry going to the fifth.. hahaha bro is high"
A fan also mentioned a recurring theme in championship fights where the challenger needs to significantly outdo the champion to warrant a result on the scorecards.
"Aljo is the right choice! We've seen this over and over again in the sport, the champ will keep the belt if it's this close. Just like the 3rd Usman and Leon fight. You can't take the belt in a fight that close, as the challenger You have to make it clear."
Other fans sided with Sean O'Malley and leaned towards a Henry Cejudo win.
"O‘Malley know it.. Cejudo won another robbery in the octagon"
"Even Suga knows Henry won that"
"He spitting facts though"
Regardless of the result, Derek Cleary's decision to score the final round in Sterling's favor raised plenty of eyebrows amongst fans.
