O'Malley outstrikes Ware to remain undefeated in impressive UFC debut
He didn't get the knockout he was angling for, but Sean O'Malley lived up to the hype nonetheless.
The highly-touted bantamweight prospect outstruck a game Terrion Ware for the better part of three rounds to win a unanimous decision in his UFC debut at The Ultimate Fighter 26 Finale in Las Vegas on Friday. The 23-year-old earned his shot at the big stage with a KO of Alfred Khashakyan on Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series this summer, and gave the outfit a solid return on its investment to remain undefeated in nine pro contests.
¡Qué gran batalla la co-estelar de #TUFFinale entre @SugaSeanMMA y @flashmma! ¿Quién ganó? pic.twitter.com/t02oCLEZkb
— UFC Español (@UFCEspanol) December 2, 2017
The lanky prospect frustrated Ware early in the opening frame, keeping him on the end of his reach and throwing a variety of strikes while darting in and out of range, with Ware giving chase and throwing leather with sporadic success.
O'Malley's gas tank didn't follow him to the second stanza, allowing Ware to make it a scrap with endless pressure and volume boxing to tie things up at a round apiece heading into the third. The young newcomer found a second wind when he needed it most, picking up where he'd left off in the first - albeit far less gracefully - by feeding Ware punches every time he tried to close the distance en route to a hard-fought sweep of the scorecards.
The seasoned Ware has now lost each of his two promotional bouts on points.