Aljamain Sterling reveals side bet with Sean O’Malley ahead of UFC 292: ‘Whoever shoots first pays $100’
Aljamain Sterling and ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley have a little side action going ahead of their highly anticipated clash at UFC 292.
On Saturday night, the promotion will make its long-awaited return to Boston for a stacked event headlined by a bantamweight title tilt between reigning 135-pound king Aljamain Sterling and No. 2 ranked contender Sean O’Malley. In the months leading up to their scrap, a lot of trash talk has been thrown around between the two, but according to Aljamain Sterling, the pair have a small side bet based on who will be first to shoot for a takedown during their main event matchup.
“Whoever shoots first pays 100 bucks,” Sterling revealed during his appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani.
Though most people would probably assume that Aljamain Sterling is more likely to shoot first, the ‘Funk Master’ believes he can pressure O’Malley into taking the first shot out of sheer panic.
“So, I do think when I pressure him, he might panic shoot. He might be the one panic-shooting because he might be worried that I’m going to take him down. Or this could be a little trickery. You never know,” Sterling said with a smile.
Who Shoots First Between Aljamain Sterling and Sean O’Malley?
Throughout his UFC career, Sean O’Malley averages less than half a takedown per every 15 minutes he spends inside the Octagon. Needless to say, seeing ‘Sugar’ shoot is a fairly rare occasion, but if Sterling manages to bring the pressure early and puts O’Malley on his back foot, we could see O’Malley take a desperate shot, thus making the ‘Funk Master’ $100 richer.
On the flip side, Aljamain Sterling averages more than two takedowns per 15 minutes, but his takedown percentage is less than stellar, only netting a 24% success rate. However, he does boast a solid 45% takedown defense percentage, meaning that if O’Malley does shoot in, he likely won’t succeed in getting Sterling to the canvas.
How do you see things playing out in Saturday night’s massive main event showdown between Aljamain Sterling and Sean O’Malley?
