"Took more damage than I'd like to"– Sean O’Malley says he needed 20 minutes backstage to recover from Petr Yan fight at UFC 280

Sean O’Malley opened up about the after-effects of his UFC 280 fight against Petr Yan.

O’Malley shut up doubters at UFC 280. ‘Sugar’ took on the No.1-ranked bantamweight contender and overcame adversity to secure a split-decision win. After recovering from the brutal fight, the Montana native joined Brett Okamoto of ESPN and had this to say:

“I don’t wanna get hit ever. If I can go in there every fight, hit that dude, drop him, get out of there without getting hit, I would love to do that. Took more damage than I’d like to. I had to take 20 minutes to just chill out in the back and breathe and just get my wits together 'cause fighting is the craziest sport in the world. I definitely got rocked a couple times. Petr's good.”

AFTER A WILD FIGHT, SEAN O'MALLEY DEFEATS PETR YAN BY SPLIT DECISION 😮 #UFC280 https://t.co/Hm08QAY83W

O’Malley’s split-decision win wasn't entirely uncontroversial. The fight was extremely close, but the MMA community seemed shocked when ‘Sugar’ was awarded the win. Yan has now lost back-to-back bouts via split decision. He also lost the closely contested rematch against reigning champion Aljamain Sterling on the judges' scorecards.

Watch the UFC 280 post-fight interview with Sean O’Malley below:

Sean O’Malley reflects on UFC 280 win by saying he "never had to dig that deep"

Petr Yan showed MMA fans what Sean O’Malley is made of. ‘Sugar’ always had the skills, but doubts about his durability lurked in the minds of fight fans. During the same post-fight interview, the Dana White's Contender Series alum said this about digging deep against ’No Mercy':

“It was fun. Fighting is the craziest sport in the world. I’ve never had to dig that deep. I’ve been doing this for a long time. That’s what happens when you fight the number one guy in the world. I had to go somewhere I’ve never been before - mentally, physically. I’m excited to rewatch it. I love rewatching my fights. This is gonna be one that I watch a lot.”

‘Sugar’ showed that he’s ready to compete against any bantamweight on the planet. That said, some questions will be asked if the Montana native gets the next title shot as his win over the No.1-ranked contender wasn't devoid of controversy.

The Verdict Scorecard had Petr Yan defeating Sean O'Malley.

#UFC280 https://t.co/WGb8B4Ynnt