"This sounds very weak" - Marlon Vera dismisses Sean O'Malley's excuses to avoid fighting UFC legend Frankie Edgar
Marlon Vera has jibed at longtime rival ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley, suggesting that O’Malley avoided a fight against UFC great Frankie Edgar. O’Malley was expected to face former lightweight champion Edgar in a highly-anticipated bantamweight bout at UFC 268 in New York in November 2021.
The O’Malley-Edgar matchup didn’t materialize, however, as 'Sugar' revealed that he wouldn’t fight Edgar during November event due to high taxes in New York. ‘Sugar’ also claimed that his coach Tim Welch had a grappling tournament around that time, adding that he’d rather accompany his coach than fight at UFC 268.
ES.PN/UFC252TWChito Vera finished "Suga" Sean O'Malley in Round 1 😳
▶️ ES.PN/UFC252TW https://t.co/Oa4yTcC3nv
In an edition of Fight Night Flashbacks with Brendan Schaub, Marlon 'Chito' Vera addressed this and stated:
“Hunter Campbell called me. He said, ‘Hey, ‘Chito.’ There’s no fight for you right now. Dominick [Cruz] don’t wanna do it. I don’t wanna bring Dominick back, but this is a real talk. Dominick is not available. You have to fight somebody out of the ranks because Frankie [Edgar], we’re giving it to [Sean] O’Malley. And honestly, you already had [Jose] Aldo. Now, we’re giving him [O’Malley] a chance.’”
“Two weeks later, O’Malley goes on Twitter, ‘Oh, I don’t wanna fight in New York, too much tax. My coach has a grappling tournament.’ I was like, ‘This sounds very weak.’ That sounds like you’re avoiding the fight.”
Vera recalled that he immediately contacted the Ultimate Fighting Championship's CBO (Chief Business Officer) Hunter Campbell and highlighted that O’Malley had tweeted about not wanting to fight Edgar.
Campbell subsequently told 'Chito' that with O’Malley out, he’d get the opportunity to face Edgar. Vera ended up fighting and beating Edgar via third-round KO at UFC 268.
Watch Vera sound off on O’Malley at the 20:10-minute mark in the video below:
Is a Marlon Vera vs. Sean O’Malley UFC rematch on the horizon in 2022?
The No. 13-ranked bantamweight Sean O’Malley will face the No. 10-ranked Pedro Munhoz at UFC 276 on July 2. Meanwhile, the No. 5-ranked Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera is scheduled to fight the No. 8-ranked Dominick Cruz in the headlining matchup of the Fight Night card on August 13th.
Vera has previously faced archrival O’Malley inside the octagon, clashing in a marquee matchup back in August 2020. ‘Chito’ won their showdown via first-round TKO after O’Malley suffered a mid-fight leg injury.
Vera has time and again emphasized that he’s the better fighter, citing the fact that he did indeed beat ‘Sugar.’ Nevertheless, O’Malley has consistently maintained that 'Chito's' win was a fluke.
Considering all the variables at play, the consensus is that longtime foes Vera and O’Malley could potentially clash in a rematch sooner rather than later.
Marlon Vera will fight Dominick Cruz at #UFCSanDiego on August 13th. (first rep. @CCLegaspi) #UFC #MMA #UFCESPN #MainEvent https://t.co/uuQHwvmPid