‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley Would Wager $10k on One UFC 287 Winner

Sean O’Malley would wager $10,000 on Israel Adesanya to beat Alex Pereira at UFC 287 on April 9.

O’Malley, 28, appeared on his YouTube channel alongside his head coach, Tim Welch, where he was thrust into the hypothetical situation of wagering money on the winner of UFC 287.

UFC 287 features a middleweight rematch between Adesanya and champion Pereira. The fight is also considered a tetralogy by many since Pereira also owns two victories over Adesanya in kickboxing.

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‘How Much Weight Is He Cutting?’ O’Malley Astonished by Pereira

“If you had to pick — right now someone gave you [$10k to bet on Pereira or Adesanya], who are you putting it on?” Welch asks the room.

“Who’s the underdog?” The question piques O’Malley’s interest. All but O’Malley agree that Pereira will win the third installment. Welch exclaims, “Watching [the first fight] I was like ‘damn he’s gonna be hard to beat — for a striker’, he’s just so f—ing huge and he’s so, like, fundamentally good.” Welch imitates Pereira’s high guard.  “He has such a high guard. Everything he throws looks like it’ll take someone’s head off —”

“But,” O’Malley interjects. “How much weight is he cutting? He doesn’t have to land that many times if he’s cutting that much weight. That motherf—er is cutting 20 lbs… 25lbs [on fight week]! That motherf—er, your chin….your brain fluids!”

O’Malley remarks about the tremendous weight-cutting Pereira undergoes in order to meet the middleweight limit. Pereira weighs in at or below 185 lbs but is renowned for regaining as much as 30 lbs just 48 hours after fighting. Drastic weight cutting has been linked to reduced durability, and it has direct negative consequences on the fighter’s organ functions.

The comments O’Malley makes are referring to the repercussions Pereira could be facing if he continues to cut such a sheer amount of weight. He alludes to his “chin” and his “brain fluids”, suggesting Pereira’s durability and motor functions could take a hit from putting so much strain on his body and organs.

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‘Let’s Get It Izzy’: O’Malley Predicts UFC 287

“Let’s get it Izzy,” O’Malley picks his wager. “I think [Adesanya] will come out and wrestle, I feel like he’ll come out, get a [couple of good] takedowns, come out, wrestle, put him on his back; really get him thinking maybe he won’t be able to march forward as much.” O’Malley believes Adesanya will play to Pereira’s weaknesses by bringing a wrestling-heavy gameplan.

O’Malley goes on to cover his bases, however, not counting Pereira out of the matchup, “Who knows? You really don’t f—ing know it.” O’Malley concludes his point. “Some people have really good things that they show at the gym that’s never been really done in a fight. It’s really good at the gym, they hit it a lot, but they’ve never done it in a fight.”

O’Malley throws a lifeline to his hypothetical fighter. Pereira defied all odds by knocking out Adesanya in the fifth round of their title fight back in November 2022. Despite the stylistic matchup and history between the two fighters, Pereira subverted expectations by securing a takedown in the second round and attacking for submissions in the third.

“Sugar” suggests that Pereira may have more feathers in his cap than many would like to believe. A true conclusion to the middleweight feud will come to fruition on April 9.

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