Sean O’Malley vs Marlon Vera 2 Preview & Picks
Sean O’Malley is tipped to retain his bantamweight title.
O’Malley started strongly in the first fight, only to suffer an injury that Marlon Vera capitalised on.
We expect his striking to be the difference in the rematch, as he out-points Vera over five rounds.
- Sean O’Malley boasts a 17-1 professional record
- All 8 of Marlon Vera’s defeats have been via decision
- Sean O’Malley lands 7.25 strikes per minute (Vera 4.37)
- Sean O’Malley has a 61% striking accuracy (Vera 4.37)
Head To Head
- Marlon Vera won by 1st round TKO when the two men last met in August 2020
Sean O’Malley Form
Sean O’Malley is the defending UFC bantamweight champion with a professional record of 17-1 (12 KOs, 1 Sub) with 1 No Contest.
O’Malley debuted in the UFC in 2017 and got off to a flying start with four straight wins, including a KO victory against Eddie Wineland.
His streak ended in his fifth outing though as an ankle injury hampered him and played a major role in his first-round TKO defeat to Marlon Vera.
‘Sugar’ has not lost since though, riding a six-fight unbeaten run to the very top of the bantamweight division.
O’Malley bounced back with a third-round knockout of Thomas Almeida, and he backed that yp with TKO successes against Kris Moutinho and Raulian Paiva.
He was unable to make it four-in-a-row as an accidental eye poke resulted in his fight with Pedro Munhoz ending in a No Contest.
The 29-year-old American got back to winning ways quickly though, beating Petr Yan by split decision to earn his shot at the bantamweight title.
O’Malley then dethroned Aljamain Sterling via second-round TKO to win the belt in his only outing of 2023.
Marlon Vera Form
Marlon Vera is the #5 ranked bantamweight contender with a professional record of 23-8-1 (8 KOs, 10 Subs).
Vera first debuted in the UFC back in November 2014 and got off to a slow start as he lost two of his first three fights.
He turned things around with a three-fight win streak in 2017, only to then suffer back-to-back defeats, but his response was a UFC career-best fight-fight win streak.
‘Chito’ stepped up the calibre of opposition from there, with mixed results in his three outings in 2020.
Vera sandwiched a first-round TKO victory over Sean O’Malley with unanimous decision defeats to Song Yadong and Jose Aldo.
He built up some momentum in 2021 though, as he beat Davey Grant by decision and then knocked out the legendary Frankie Edgar in the third round.
The 31-year-old Ecuadorian then beat Rob Font on points before recording the biggest win of his career so far – a fourth round knockout of two-time bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz.
Vera failed to make it five-in-a-row as he then dropped a decision to Cory Sandhagen almost a year ago, but he bounced back last summer with a points success against Pedro Munhoz.