Marlon Vera claims Sean O'Malley refused to fight him in a rematch
Sean O'Malley continues to insist that he is undefeated, despite the presence of his loss against Marlon Vera on his official record. And now, it turns out that the 'Sugar Show' apparently declined a rematch against Marlon Vera.
Marlon Vera was asked by a fan on Twitter whether he would consider a rematch against Sean O'Malley. In response to the question, 'Chito' wrote:
"He [Sean O'Malley] declined. I got offered [a rematch against Sean O'Malley], said yes and silence from him."
Sean O'Malley declined to avenge his loss against Marlon Vera, contradicting his claim to be unbeaten. An opportunity to beat Marlon Vera, with his body functioning properly, will give O'Malley the chance to prove his claims.
The two bantamweights clashed in the co-main event of UFC 252 in August, 2020. Sean O'Malley started off with spontaneous kicks to the body. The two had some exchanges, and it was during one of these exchanges that Sean O'Malley began limping. His right foot was evidently damaged as he minimized movement with that foot.
While attempting to slide to the side in a quick movement, Sean O'Malley fell to the canvas, very clearly in pain. Marlon Vera jumped at the opportunity and unleashed vicious elbows in ground-and-pound.
Referee Herb Dean didn't prolong bringing the fight to a stop, and Sean O'Malley lost via TKO (Elbows and Punches).
Why does Sean O'Malley continue to disregard his loss to Marlon Vera?
Sean O'Malley last fought very recently on March 27, 2021 against Bantamweight vet Thomas Almeida. Leading up to the fight, Sean O'Malley featured in a number of interviews.
Many-a-time, he was asked what he thought about his previous fight against Marlon Vera and getting back on the winning side. All of Sean O'Malley's answers resounded the same thought: Sean O'Malley believes he's unbeaten.
In an interview with ESPN MMA reporter Ariel Helwani, Sean O'Malley said:
"I think I wasn't beaten that night because my skills weren't as good. Literally, his big toe hit my perennial nerve and it caused drop foot. It wasn't a calf kick. Calf kicks hurt bad, but they don't give you drop-foot. At least not the first one. I didn't feel like I lost because my skills weren't better than this. It just happened that way."
Meanwhile, Marlon Vera's most recent outing ended in disappointment as he lost a unanimous decision to former champion Jose Aldo in December 2020.