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“I’m not a guy that I’m chasing promotion or Instagram followers. All that s—t came by f—ing people up and that’s why I’m here.”
Marlon Vera was unfazed by any of Sean O’Malley’s trash talk or hype before his first-round stoppage win against ‘Suga’ at UFC 252 this past weekend.
Vera (16-6-1) became the first fighter to defeat O’Malley (12-1) after ‘Suga’ suffered an injury to his leg and Vera closed the show with heavy elbows on the ground. Vera said those who criticized referee Herb Dean’s stoppage — including O’Malley’s corner — are completely wrong.
“The guy was snoring,” Vera said of O’Malley. “When I landed the second elbow, he was making noises, he was out. And then when Herb Dean got in the middle, you could see [O’Malley’s] head bounce back. I see his corner saying, ‘No, that was too early.’ We make eye contact and I was like, ‘You know that s—t wasn’t early,’ and the guy was pretty quiet all of a sudden. (Transcription via MMA Fighting)
It’s highly likely after his win that “Chito” will enter the top-15 at bantamweight when the new UFC rankings are released. Unhappy with the outcome of his previous fight against Song Yadong, Vera believes he’s a “solid top-10” at 135-pounds.
The Ecuadorian also said that O’Malley’s corner was yelling at him before the fight even took place. Vera explained that he’s not fighting for fame or followers on social media, and simply wants to work his way to the top of the division.
“That guy was talking s—t while we were getting ready to walk to the cage. He was yelling, ‘He’s slow.’ It’s like, dude, it’s a f—ing fight, if you want to try to get in my head, you’ve got to try harder than that. So I was just like, the only way to make you pay is f—ing your kid up.”
“When it’s about fighting, those things don’t bother me,” Vera said. “You’ve got to beat those guys in the way I did in order to get what they had. I’m not a guy that I’m chasing promotion or Instagram followers. All that s—t came by f—ing people up and that’s why I’m here.”