Oddsmakers are favoring newly crowned UFC bantamweight champion [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] to avenge the lone loss of his career.
O’Malley (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) dethroned champ Aljamain Sterling with a second-round TKO in this past Saturday’s UFC 292 headliner at TD Garden in Boston. O’Malley wants his first title defense in December against [autotag]Marlon Vera[/autotag], who defeated Pedro Munhoz on the same night O’Malley claimed gold.
Vera (21-8-1 MMA, 15-7 UFC) is also the only man to beat O’Malley, stopping him by first-round TKO in August 2020 after O’Malley’s leg gave out.
According to DraftKings, O’Malley is a -198 favorite, meaning a $198 bet would be needed on the champion to return $100 profit. Vera is a +164 underdog, meaning a $100 bet on “Chito” would win $164.
Since losing to Vera, O’Malley went on a six-fight unbeaten run, finishing four of those six fights. He edged out former champion Petr Yan for a shot at the title.
Meanwhile, Vera won five of seven after finishing O’Malley – including knockouts of former champions Frankie Edgar and Dominick Cruz.
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.