BOSTON – Sean O'Malley rose to the occasion and knocked out Aljamain Sterling to claim the bantamweight title at UFC 292 under circumstances that were les than ideal.
Although he achieved an essentially flawless victory en route to a second-round TKO of Sterling (23-4 MMA, 15-4 UFC) in the headlining bout at TD Garden, the weeks leading up to O’Malley (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) stepping in the octagon were filled with hardship and adversity.
An upper body muscle injury plagued O’Malley’s preparation, he said, and completely eliminated the ability to prepare for Sterling’s high-level grappling over the final six weeks of camp.
