At UFC 292, Sean O’Malley ascended as the triumphant new UFC bantamweight champion with a spectacular TKO victory over Aljamain Sterling. Interestingly, it took O’Malley just two fights against top-10-ranked opponents before he was presented with the opportunity to fight for the championship.
In the lead-up to the highly anticipated clash, Aljamain Sterling passionately voiced his reservations about Sean O’Malley’s rightful claim to challenge him for the bantamweight championship. With conviction, Sterling emphasized his determination to hold O’Malley accountable for his statements.
Furthermore, Sterling insinuated that O’Malley’s title shot can be attributed to what he termed as “Dana White privilege” rather than ‘Sugar’s merits inside the octagon. But what does the term mean?
The term “Dana White privilege” was coined by former UFC interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson at the UFC 262 press conference. The outspoken UFC lightweight contender was miffed that Chandler, with just one victory in the organization (against Dan Hooker at UFC 257) was handed the opportunity to fight Charles Oliveria for the vacant lightweight throne.
A similar treatment was given to Sean O’Malley according to Sterling. UFC president Dana White addressed the notion at the UFC 292 post-fight press conference by simply stating:
“You don’t become No.2 in the world without earning [it]. There is no such thing as Dana White privilege in this company”
Dana White reacts to Sean O’Malley’s impressive second-round TKO victory over Aljamain Sterling
Sean O’Malley dethroned the long-reigning bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling by TKO in the second round of their main event clash at UFC 292.
‘Funk Master’, in an attempt to close the distance and eventually secure a takedown, ran into O’Malley’s thunderous right hand. Sterling went crashing face-first on the canvas. A relentless onslaught from O’Malley ensued, prompting the referee to intervene.
Speaking about O’Malley’s impressive display at the post-fight press conference, Dana White stated:
“When you think about the fight and you think about Sterling, you say to yourself, ‘how does Sean beat that guy?’… You never know man, styles make fights and things happen in fights that you sometimes don’t expect.”
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