"Go out there and do the same thing” - Sean O’Malley will channel his inner “Israel Adesanya” at UFC 299 against Marlon Vera
Israel Adesanya exacted revenge over Alex Pereira at UFC 287 in Miami by defeating 'Poatan' in their MMA rematch to reclaim the middleweight title.
Sean O'Malley, who will be facing Marlon Vera in a rematch at UFC 299, also in Miami, is hoping to replicate Adesanya's performance in O'Malley's first defense of the bantamweight title.
'Sugar' suffered the only defeat of his career to Vera at UFC 252 in 2020. 'Chito' compromised O'Malley's leg after landing a calf kick that hit his opponent's peroneal nerve. The kick caused 'Sugar' to temporarily lose feeling in his foot, which left him vulnerable to strikes due to impaired movement.
He was finished via ground-and-pound, but the bantamweight champion has dismissed his defeat on several occasions because of the nature of his loss.
Ahead of UFC 299, 'Sugar' was interviewed by Shakiel Mahjouri, where he said this:
"[Israel Adesanya] knocked out Alex Pereira in their rematch [in Miami]. You know what I mean. So I'm just gonna have to go out there and do the same thing. Knock 'Chito' out in the rematch, and rewrite history. It will be beautiful."
Watch the video below from 2:30:
Michael Bisping speculates on Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya headlining UFC 300
UFC 300 is set to take place in April, and is expected to be one of the promotion's biggest-ever cards.
There have been numerous fight announcements for the anticipated event, but the pay-per-view headliner is yet to be released, leading to speculation from both fans and pundits about who could feature.
Rumors have circled that the winner of Sean Strickland vs. Dricus du Plessis, set to take place at UFC 297 next weekend, could face Adesanya at UFC 300.
But Michael Bisping has now suggested that the main event could be a light heavyweight title bout between Alex Pereira and 'The Last Stylebender'. Following the Brazilian's TKO win over Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295 to become the new 205 pound champion, he called out Adesanya for a trilogy bout.
During a recent YouTube video, Bisping shared his thoughts on the UFC 300 headliner, saying this:
"Who has had two fights, won one and lost one, with Alex Pereira? Israel Adesanya. Who wants to come back and make this biggest splash? Of course, that's Adesanya... At 205 pounds. Boom, there it is. There's the caveat. There's your UFC 300 main event. All wrapped up with a little bowtie put on it."
Watch the video below from 4:30: