Tag: chito vera

Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera promises to bounce back following brutal UFC 299 loss: ‘The belt will be mine one day’

Marlon 'Chito' Vera promises to bounce back following brutal UFC 299 loss: 'The belt will be mine one day'Carrying a ton of confidence from being the first and only fighter to hand bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley a…

Marlon 'Chito' Vera promises to bounce back following brutal UFC 299 loss: 'The belt will be mine one day'

Carrying a ton of confidence from being the first and only fighter to hand bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley a loss in his MMA career, Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera was dealt a hard dose of reality during Saturday’s headliner in Miami, Florida.

From the opening bell, O’Malley was in complete control of their long-awaited rematch, using his speed and skill to bust up the Ecuadorian for a full 25 minutes. Vera undeniably proved his toughness, taking everything ‘Sugar’ had, and even folded the defending champ with a vicious body blow in the closing seconds of their UFC 299 headliner — a moral victory, but one that ultimately left him going home without the gold.

Chito Vera vs. Sean O'Malley

Still, ‘Chito’ has plenty of reason to hold his head high and is already looking ahead to a future trilogy fight with O’Malley.

“I dream about last night my whole life and fell short at the end of the day,” he wrote on Instagram. “I will be back. Thanks to my family and team for being by my side. The love of Ecuador was felt more than ever, thank you for supporting me that way I will come back stronger, the belt will be mine one day.”

Marlon 'Chito' Vera

As for what could be next for Vera, a fight with former titleholder Petr Yan certainly makes a lot of sense. ‘No Mercy’ returned to the win column in the main card opener, delivering a solid performance against rising contender Song Yadong. It was Yan’s first win since suffering three-straight losses against Aljamain Sterling, Sean O’Malley, and Merab Dvalishvili.

Immediately following the UFC 299 main event, Yan called for a fight with ‘Chito’ before hoping to secure his own rematch with Sean O’Malley.

Sean O’Malley Unlikely to Get Ilia Topuria Fight following win over ‘Chito’ Vera

Sean O’Malley will likely put his title on the line against Merab Dvalishvili when he returns to the Octagon later this year. In February, ‘The Machine’ earned a decisive decision victory over Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo, securing his spot at the top of the stacked 135-pound division.

Despite there being a clear-cut contender to deal with, O’Malley expressed interest in going up a weight class to challenge newly minted featherweight titleholder Ilia Topuria during his post-fight interview inside the Kaseya Center. As exciting as that fight sounds, UFC CEO Dana White is unlikely to grant his wish considering ‘Sugar’ just bagged his first successful defense while Topuria is yet to book his first fight as a defending champion.

Petr Yan planning to fight ‘Chito’ Vera and Sean O’Malley following his return to the win column at UFC 299

After snapping a three-fight losing skid, Petr Yan already has his next two fights planned out. Making his first…

After snapping a three-fight losing skid, Petr Yan already has his next two fights planned out.

Making his first appearance of 2024 inside the Octagon, ‘No Mercy’ delivered a solid showing against rising bantamweight contender Song Yadong in the UFC 299 main card opener. Though the bout was relatively close on the stat sheet, Yan delivered the more punishing blows throughout the second and third rounds, securing him the 29-28 decision on all three scorecards.

Petr Yan

Back in the win column, the former bantamweight champion already has some big aspirations, including a fight with one-time UFC title challenger Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera.

But he’s not stopping there…

“Chito, you are next,” Yan said backstage. “Sean after. I’ll smash these two guys.”

Petr Yan Wants Redemption for Controversial Loss to Sean O’Malley

A couple hours after Yan saw his hand raised inside the Octagon, ‘Chito’ Vera and Sean O’Malley stepped into the main event spotlight at UFC 299 for a rematch nearly four years in the making. O’Malley, who was determined to erase a bitter loss to Vera in August 2020, put on a striking clinic, battering Vera for 25 minutes en route to retaining his 135-pound crown decisively.

Sean O'Malley vs. Marlon Vera

With Yan locked in at No. 4 in the rankings and Vera still clinging to his No. 5 slot, a fight between the two would certainly make sense and could be exactly what ‘No Mercy’ needs to secure his own rematch with Sean O’Malley.

Before ‘Sugar’ claimed the bantamweight title with a brutal second-round KO of Aljamain Sterling last year, he had to go through Petr Yan at UFC 280. O’Malley walked away with a razor-close split decision. The result was met with significant skepticism from pundits believing Yan’s six takedowns and more than five minutes of control time were enough to win.

Sean O’Malley heckled by crowd during UFC 299 presser, blasts arch rival Chito Vera: ‘He’s a piñata’

Sean O'Malley heckled by crowd during UFC 299 press conference labels Chito Vera a piñata in heated face offRemaining supremely confident of landing his first successful bantamweight title defense this weekend at UFC 299, Sean O’Malley branded…

Sean O'Malley heckled by crowd during UFC 299 press conference labels Chito Vera a piñata in heated face off

Remaining supremely confident of landing his first successful bantamweight title defense this weekend at UFC 299, Sean O’Malley branded incoming foe, Marlon Vera a “piñata” ahead of their championship rematch – receiving his fair share of boos and heckles to boot during tonight’s pre-fight press conference.

O’Malley, the current undisputed bantamweight titleholder, is slated to make his return to the Octagon this weekend in Miami, Florida – taking on former opponent, Vera in a championship grudge fight atop UFC 299 in the ‘Sunshine State’. 

Attempting to avenge his first promotional loss, Montana native, Sean O’Malley dropped his perfect professional record in first round ground strikes TKO loss to the Ecuadorian back in 2020 during the duo’s initial rise through the bantamweight ranks.

Sean O’Malley takes aim at Chito Vera during UFC 299 presser

And sharing the stage with the Chone native tonight ahead of their grudge clash at the Kaseya Center in Miami, O’Malley attempted to jab at Vera, calling him a “piñata” as well as hitting out at former foe, Petr Yan – and likely next title challenger, Merab Dvalishvili – who is also set to serve as the official backup fighter to this weekend’s main event clash. 

Facing off with Vera to close out the night’s press event in Miami – O’Malley, sporting a green shimmering robe – of sorts, shared an intense face-off with the soel fighter to beat him, with security and UFC officials keeping a close eye on their coming together.

UFC 299 takes place this weekend at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida – with the undisputed bantamweight title fight between O’Malley and Vera slated to take main event honors.

UFC 299 Presser
Mandatory Credit: Chris Unger – Zuffa LLC

In the night’s co-main event, former interim lightweight champion, Dustin Poirier takes on surging Nimes native, Benoit Saint-Denis in a five round clash, however, speculation has been rife regarding the Frenchman’s condition, with fans appearing to spot a potential staph infection on the contender’s forehead ahead of fight night. 

Who wins this weekend in Miami at UFC 299: Sean O’Malley or Chito Vera?

‘Chito’ Vera claims it’s entirely too easy to skirt USADA’s testing protocols: ‘You need like 20 grand’

Chito VeraBantamweight contender Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera is exposing how easy it can be to get around the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s testing protocols. Following his win over Pedro Munhoz at UFC 292, Vera finds himself on the cusp of his first title fight against newly-crowned bantamweight world champion, ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley. A month removed from his […]

Chito Vera

Bantamweight contender Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera is exposing how easy it can be to get around the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s testing protocols.

Following his win over Pedro Munhoz at UFC 292, Vera finds himself on the cusp of his first title fight against newly-crowned bantamweight world champion, ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley.

A month removed from his last outing, ‘Chito’ sat down with bodybuilder Bradley Martyn on his popular podcast, Raw Talk, to discuss the fight game and his potential title opportunity. During their conversation, Vera expressed his disdain for fighters who utilize banned substances, noting that it’s entirely too easy to work around USADA if you’ve got the cash and the right doctor.

“Pussies that cheat to win tournaments and enhance with drugs; when people cheat, they do drugs to be faster,” Vera said. “I’m talking (in) competition. If you wanna be a f**king big guy, be a big guy, cool. But fighting, specific. It’s too f**ked up. I think there’s a lot of people taking it because it’s so easy to beat USADA. You need like 20 grand. Call a good doctor, boom” (h/t BJPenn.com).

He continued, “A good doctor will give you good products. He will tell you how to clean yourself. USADA only comes 6am to 6pm. I would love if USADA knock on your door at 4am, 10pm, 3pm — random, because they have this window. So, I can go to the f*cking mountains in Ecuador and tell them I’m hunting. I’ll be doing EPO and sh*t. By the time I come back there’s nothing in me.”

This is far from the first time ‘Chito’ has expressed his own frustration over alleged cheating in mixed martial arts and he made it abundantly clear that he would never take anything that gave himself an unfair advantage inside the Octagon.

“I’d rather die before I cheat, bro,” Vera added.

‘Chito’ Vera claims it’s entirely too easy to skirt USADA’s testing protocols: ‘You need like 20 grand’

Chito VeraBantamweight contender Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera is exposing how easy it can be to get around the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s testing protocols. Following his win over Pedro Munhoz at UFC 292, Vera finds himself on the cusp of his first title fight against newly-crowned bantamweight world champion, ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley. A month removed from his […]

Chito Vera

Bantamweight contender Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera is exposing how easy it can be to get around the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s testing protocols.

Following his win over Pedro Munhoz at UFC 292, Vera finds himself on the cusp of his first title fight against newly-crowned bantamweight world champion, ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley.

A month removed from his last outing, ‘Chito’ sat down with bodybuilder Bradley Martyn on his popular podcast, Raw Talk, to discuss the fight game and his potential title opportunity. During their conversation, Vera expressed his disdain for fighters who utilize banned substances, noting that it’s entirely too easy to work around USADA if you’ve got the cash and the right doctor.

“Pussies that cheat to win tournaments and enhance with drugs; when people cheat, they do drugs to be faster,” Vera said. “I’m talking (in) competition. If you wanna be a f**king big guy, be a big guy, cool. But fighting, specific. It’s too f**ked up. I think there’s a lot of people taking it because it’s so easy to beat USADA. You need like 20 grand. Call a good doctor, boom” (h/t BJPenn.com).

He continued, “A good doctor will give you good products. He will tell you how to clean yourself. USADA only comes 6am to 6pm. I would love if USADA knock on your door at 4am, 10pm, 3pm — random, because they have this window. So, I can go to the f*cking mountains in Ecuador and tell them I’m hunting. I’ll be doing EPO and sh*t. By the time I come back there’s nothing in me.”

This is far from the first time ‘Chito’ has expressed his own frustration over alleged cheating in mixed martial arts and he made it abundantly clear that he would never take anything that gave himself an unfair advantage inside the Octagon.

“I’d rather die before I cheat, bro,” Vera added.

‘Chito’ Vera confident he would kill Bradley Martyn in street fight: ‘I’m opening your guts and playing with them’

Chito VeraUFC bantamweight contender Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera wasn’t interested in playing games with bodybuilder Bradley Martyn. Over the last few months, Martyn has drawn the ire of the MMA community for suggesting that his 260-pound frame would be enough to scrap with some of the best fighters in the world. Recently, ONE flyweight world champion Demetrious […]

Chito Vera

UFC bantamweight contender Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera wasn’t interested in playing games with bodybuilder Bradley Martyn.

Over the last few months, Martyn has drawn the ire of the MMA community for suggesting that his 260-pound frame would be enough to scrap with some of the best fighters in the world. Recently, ONE flyweight world champion Demetrious Johnson called Martyn’s bluff, offering to fly to California and roll with the popular YouTuber.

For the most part, fighters like Sean O’Malley and Nate Diaz have patronized Martyn in their responses, but ‘Chito’ Vera took a decidedly different approach while appearing on a recent episode of Martyn’s Raw Talk podcast.

“I’d kill you, I swear to God I’d kill you,” Vera answered when asked who would win in a street fight between himself and Martyn. “The only way for you to beat me is if you grab me and you hit my head with the wall, then if I get KOed. Because if you don’t knock me out, I’m gonna keep coming. And cardio-wise, I’m an animal, dude.

“You know like in Street Fighter, the health [bar]? Even if you start punching me and hurting me, my health won’t leave me too quick. You would have to really knock me out. If not dude, you’re f*cked. I’m gonna take your eyes out of your face… I’m opening your guts and f*cking playing with them” (h/t MMA Mania).

Will ‘Chito’ Vera Score His First Shot at UFC Gold in 2023?

‘Chito’ Vera is currently on the cusp of a bantamweight world title opportunity after the division’s new titleholder, ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley, challenged Vera to run back their UFC 252 bout that saw Vera hand O’Malley his first career UFC loss. O’Malley has long no-sold the first-round TKO defeat as he suffered a leg injury early in the round. The bout was expected to go down as part of the promotion’s final pay-per-view of the year in December, but ‘Chito’ has recently gone on record suggesting that O’Malley is now attempting to pull out of the reported title tilt.

Vera has won five of his last six inside the Octagon, most recently scoring a unanimous decision over Pedro Munhoz in short notice showdown at UFC 292.