Rising bantamweight star ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley kept the hype train rolling at UFC 250, as he flatlined former WEC champion Eddie Wineland in under two minutes with a savage right hand.
In the milestone event which took place at the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas due to safety concerns around the coronavirus pandemic, the crucial shot was scarily audible for television viewers, as O’Malley got the job done in the very first round.
The walk-off KO is by no means anything new, as heavyweight cult hero Mark Hunt can attest to after several stunning examples, but they are no less extraordinary when they occur, prompting UFC commentator Joe Rogan to gush "that’s the best walk-off KO I’ve ever seen."
The victory sees O’Malley’s perfect record improved to an unbeaten 12-0. In his last outing in March, he knocked out Joe Quinonez at UFC 248, and is surely now looking towards the challenges that await at the top end of the stacked bantamweight division.
Speaking at a post-fight media scrum, ‘Sugar’ said the manner of victory was far from a surprise.
“It was a matter of minutes from the beginning of the bell, It was a matter of time before I cracked him with something,” said O’Malley.
"I was longer than him and it’s not always who’s longer but when you’re as fast as I am and as accurate as I am, I am going to land first.”
Arguably, the one downside for O’Malley was his spectacular KO was matched by Cody Garbrandt, with ‘No Love’ dropping Raphael Assuncao with a stunning haymaker of his own in his comeback fight. Both men walked away with $50,000 Performance of the Night bonuses for their efforts.
Also on rt.com 'Cleanest KO you'll ever see': Garbrandt FLATLINES Assuncao with DEVASTATING buzzer-beater at UFC 250 (VIDEO)That win for Garbrandt and the first-round submission for Aljamain Sterling over Cory Sandhagen means the bantamweight division is in good health.
Sterling is now the favorite to get a shot at the winner of the matchup between rising Russian star Petr Yan and Brazilian veteran Jose Aldo, whom Dana White has said will contest the recently vacated title in the 135lbs division.
With that performance from O’Malley though, he’ll be confident of getting a crack at some of the division’s big hitters sooner rather than later.