Sean O’Malley remains “Mentally Undefeated” as he proved that he is still a top contender in the bantamweight division. He almost finished his opponent, Almeida in the first round but did not go for the finish which may be a rookie mistake.
O’Malley tried to do the walk-off KO which he had done to his previous opponents but Almeida proved to be a durable opponent. It may be a mistake on O’Malley’s side but it could also be beneficial for him in the long run. First, is he learned the mistake of finishing his opponent until the referee pulls him out. Second, he need as much ring time as he can get, since his fights end too fast.
Fortunately, the referee gave Almeida a chance to defend which later proved that he could still hang in the fight. After suffering the knockdown, Almeida got a second wind and even had his moments in the fight. Meanwhile, O’Malley was still winning the fight overall.
In the third round, the commentators thought that the fight would end in a decision but O’Malley landed a straight left that rocked Almeida completely. He then tried to walk-off again but the referee did not stop it yet. He then proceeded to land the finishing punch that ended the fight.
For those who don’t know where the mentally undefeated came from, it was from his reaction to his first pro loss against Chito Vera. He went to say that he is still undefeated mentally since the way he lost was because Vera landing a kick on his peroneal nerve that led to him being immobile.
O’Malley looked fast and skilled for Almeida, so a top bantamweight makes sense for his next opponent. It would be exciting on who will be his next opponent, one fighter interested in facing him is Dominick Cruz.
