Even though Marlon Vera has wanted to fight Sean O’Malley for a while, he doesn’t hold any particular animosity towards him.
O’Malley’s corner is another story entirely.
In Saturday’s UFC 252 bantamweight co-main event, Vera became the first fighter to defeat O’Malley, capitalizing on an O’Malley leg injury to attack with ground-and-pound and finish with heavy elbows from top position. Referee Herb Dean was quick to step in for the stoppage, which drew no protest from O’Malley as he remained on his back clutching at his leg, in obvious pain.
According to Vera, O’Malley’s corner did take issue with Dean’s call, which wasn’t surprising to Vera given the pre-fight talk he heard from an opposing cornerman.