Israel Adesanya on Sean O’Malley’s loss: ‘I’ve been there before’

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Israel Adesanya recalled losing to a particular opponent while discussing how Sean O’Malley must have felt before a defeat to Marlon Vera.

Vera and O’Malley’s bout at UFC 252 ended badly for the latter when a case of ‘drop foot’ exposed him to a TKO.

This loss was the UFC bantamweight champion’s only, and now the duo are going to rerun the fight at UFC 299.

Ex-middleweight champion Adesanya brought back to mind his own loss to Alex Pereira in 2022 which had occurred after a similar situation O’Malley encountered.

Pereira had kicked Adesanya on the perineal nerve just as Vera did to O’Malley, so Adesanya knew exactly how ‘drop foot’ which likely sets in during such a situation felt.

‘(Everything changed when) that leg kick landed. He switched (stance) straight away,’ Adesanya said in a video shared via his FREESTYLEBENDER YouTube channel after rewatching Vera versus O’Malley.

‘It’s just weird. I’ve been there before. When did I have it? Oh yeah, (against) Alex (Pereira). I remember watching this (O’Malley vs. Vera) live and thinking, “What the f*ck is happening?”

‘I don’t like that feeling. I remember the feeling. It’s not good.

‘I hate that feeling. If I go back to my one, you feel like your leg’s bisgetti. You wanna push off. Even your front foot, you wanna put weight on it, it just feels weird.

‘Like someone just did the five fingers of death or something and you’re like, “My nerves, it’s not working.” Not even pins and needles, it’s just not there.’

A rematch has the power to right a resumé, but the defeat will remain in O’Malley’s record.