Things got a little chippy between Petr Yan and ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley as the two faced off for the first time ahead of their highly anticipated UFC 280 clash.
Expected to serve as a title eliminator, Petr Yan will put his No. 1 ranking on the line against undeniable fan-favorite Sean O’Malley who looks to jump the line on his way to a bantamweight title opportunity. Coming face-t0-face with one another for the first time at the UFC 280 press conference, things nearly got out of hand as Yan abruptly shoved O’Malley across the stage, forcing security to intervene.
Following the shove, O’Malley played to the crowd before both fighters walked off without further incident. Saturday’s clash with Petr Yan will be by far the biggest test of O’Malley’s career thus far. Earning a contract on The Ultimate Fighter in 2017, O’Malley rattled off four impressive wins inside the Octagon before suffering his first setback against Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera. Since then, ‘The Sugar Show’ has entertained fans with three straight victories, all by way of knockout.
His last outing did end in disappointing fashion as an unintentional eye poke to his opponent Pedro Munhoz brought an end to their UFC 276 bout in the second round. The bout was ruled a no-contest.
Petr Yan and Sean O’Malley Weren’t the Only Ones With an Intense Staredown
Also facing off for the first time at the UFC 280 press conference were event headliners Charles ‘Do Bronx’ Oliveira and Islam Makhachev. The two will square off in the main event match to crown a new lightweight world champion after Oliveira was stripped of the title following a failed weight cut ahead of UFC 274 in May.
The two warriors got uncomfortably close to one another during the face-offs with Khabib Nurmagomedov’s protege needing to be pulled away from the man standing in his way of becoming a UFC champion. Last defeated in 2015, Islam Makhachev will step into the Octagon on an incredible 10-fight win streak, finishing his opponent 60% of the time during that run.
TALK ABOUT INTENSE!😬
Charles Oliveira vs. Islam Makhachev will deliver! #UFC280 #MMA #UFC
— Combat Sports UK (@CombatSportsUK) October 20, 2022
Not to be outdone, Charles Oliveira enters the bout with 11-straight wins with 10 of those coming by way of finish. For many fans, it’s a coin flip as to who will walk out the new UFC lightweight champion, but you can practically guarantee that someone will either tap or nap in Abu Dhabi this Saturday.
