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ESPN Staff Writer- Brett Okamoto has reported on mixed martial arts and boxing at ESPN since 2010. He has covered all of the biggest events in combat sports during that time, including in-depth interviews and features with names such as Dana White, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor, Nate Diaz, Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao and Georges St-Pierre. He was also a producer on the 30 for 30 film: "Chuck and Tito," which looked back at the careers and rivalry of Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz. He lives in Las Vegas, and is an avid, below-average golfer in his spare time.
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ESPN Staff Writer- Marc Raimondi's first year covering the Falcons was 2024, but it wasn't his first year at ESPN. He joined the company in 2019 and was a top combat sports reporter. He also covered professional wrestling and wrote the book "Say Hello to the Bad Guys: How Pro Wrestling's New World Order Changed America," which was published by Simon & Schuster in 2025. Raimondi also worked for the New York Post and Newsday, beginning in 2009, covering high school and college sports, plus the NFL, NFL, MLB and NHL.
MIAMI -- Sean O'Malley's only career loss came against Marlon "Chito" Vera. And now, he has avenged it, cementing himself as the UFC's next big star in the process.
In a stylish striking performance, befitting someone who wore blue and pink cornrows and custom pink fight shorts, O'Malley defeated Vera via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-44) in the main event of UFC 299 on Saturday night. With the victory, O'Malley picked up his first successful defense of the UFC bantamweight title.
O'Malley's combinations and footwork shined for most of the fight. He landed sniper-like left hands and hard right crosses. A right knee up the middle from O'Malley hurt Vera badly in the second round, opening up a cut below Vera's right eye. In the third, O'Malley sent Vera to a knee with a right hand.
Full recap of O'Malley-Vera from Marc Raimondi
Prior to the main event, Dustin Poirier retained his place in the lightweight division by knocking out rising prospect Benoit Saint Denis in the second round, Michael "Venom" Page made a successful UFC debut with a decision win over Kevin Holland, Jack Della Maddalena knocked out Gilbert Burns and Petr Yan surged in the final two rounds to deny Song Yadong a top ranking.
Here's how all the action of UFC 299 played out in Miami:
