For many fighters in the UFC, receiving their first loss after an undefeated career start brings them back down to Earth a bit. And Sean O’Malley, one of the most promising fighters in the organization’s ranks, received his first career loss in August when he was defeated by Marlon Vera. Not only that, but O’Malley will have time to think about his current situation as he sits out injured.
It’s a tough time for O’Malley. It’s a crossroads moment where he may either come back better or slide further. But former UFC champion Henry Cejudo doesn’t seem to have much faith in the young star. According to him, O’Malley overrates himself a bit.
Sean O’Malley not built to last?
Sean O’Malley can dish out pain but not take it. At least, that’s what Henry Cejudo implied when he gave his take on the Real Quick with Mike Swick podcast. That’s not to say that Cejudo is a hater. He claimed to have a lot of friends in common with O’Malley, and sent him advice before his fight with Vera.
“I’ll be honest with you, I actually like the kid. In some way I’m hating on him, in some way I like him. I’m weird like that. I wish the kid the best, but I also think that he thinks he’s better than what he really is. Even though he’s got the gifts, he’s got great distance, great demeanor, great fakes. Watching those like very subtle. I look at all these minor little details but he hasn’t been built to freaking last,” Cejudo said.
He continued by saying that O’Malley hasn’t been through a war yet, at this point in his career.
“You can give the pain but can you take the pain? That’s the difference between somebody like Sean O’Malley and me. Does he have better striking than me? Probably because of his length and his range, makes him a little dangerous. But you’ve just got to be the full package.”
Being a former champion in two divisions, Cejudo knows a bit about what it takes to win a belt. But his advice isn’t just some quick tips that O’Malley can apply. Rather, he blamed a lot of the problem on inexperience. The only way to solve that is for O’Malley to fight more.
That won’t be for a bit, thanks to the new injury for O’Malley. How he responds when he comes back, though, may just alter the path of his career.