While some might disagree with the decision, Sean O'Malley at minimum proved to be a valiant opponent to Petr Yan when he picked up an instantly debated victory.
O’Malley (16-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) defeated Yan (16-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28) on the UFC 280 pay-per-view main card Saturday at UFC 280 main card at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
With many onlookers thinking Yan did enough prior to the decision to comfortably win, the scorecards favored O’Malley, who said he would have to go back and watch a fight he initially thought could’ve gone either way.
After an uncalled eye poke in the early moments of the fight, Yan ripped a body kick. Yan leg kicks battered O’Malley’s lead leg. Yan took O’Malley down, but eventually O’Malley found his way back up.
In Round 2, O’Malley stunned Yan with a combination and pounced. Yan weathered the storm and dropped O’Malley with a wicked punch of his own. Yan landed on top as O’Malley threatened submissions from the bottom.
O’Malley’s third round flurries were seemingly greater in quality and quantity in the final round. Each men stunned the other on multiple occasions. O’Malley’s standing knee emerged as a big weapon, as he snuck it up the middle and drilled Yan in the head. Yan took O’Malley down and controlled him, but was unable to muster up any significant offense once there.
After a closely contested fight by all standards, O’Malley was named victor.
THE BIGGEST WIN OF @SUGASEANMMA'S CAREER!! #UFC280 pic.twitter.com/NKHUYagNjM
— UFC (@ufc) October 22, 2022
#UFC280 results: Sean O'Malley (@SugaSeanMMA) def. Petr Yan via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Full results: https://t.co/ASgbZsUNOZ pic.twitter.com/bXgLKTWtOA
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) October 22, 2022
Regardless, a win is a win in the record books. Outside of a loss to Marlon Vera by TKO that stemmed from an injury in 2020, O’Malley remains unbeaten. Many fans and experts thought Yan would serve as a massive test for O’Malley, who hadn’t competed against a title contender-esque opponent prior.
Yan now finds himself on a two-fight skid for the first time. He’s lost three of four, with the other two defeats in title fights against Aljamain Sterling.
Up-to-the-minute UFC 280 results include:
